Improved performance of a polymer nanogenerator based on silver nanoparticles doped electrospun P(VDF-HFP) nanofibers

We report on the electrospinning of poly(vinylidene fluoride-hexafluoropropylene) [P(VDF-HFP)] nanofibers doped with silver nanoparticles for the preparation of a polymer based nanogenerator (PNG). It has been found that the yield of the piezoelectric phase is increased by the addition of silver nanoparticles. Furthermore, defects in the P(VDF-HFP) electrospun fibers are removed resulting in a significant enhancement in the output power of the PNG. A maximum generated PNG output voltage of 3 V with a current density of 0.9 μA cm(-2) is achieved.