Bioinspired Interfacial Strengthening Flexible Supercapacitors via Hierarchically Topological Interlocking Strategy

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Electrochemistry
• Nanotechnology

Background:

• Flexible micro-supercapacitors (MSCs) are crucial for wearable devices but suffer from poor interfacial adhesion, limiting performance.
• Weak adhesion between active materials and current collectors leads to performance degradation during mechanical stress.
• Existing strategies struggle to provide sufficient interfacial strength for robust flexible MSCs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a novel interfacial enhancement strategy for flexible MSCs.
• To improve the mechanical stability and energy density of flexible MSCs.
• To provide a new approach for high-performance flexible electronic devices.

Main Methods:

• Bioinspired hierarchically topological interlocking strategy using 3D structures.
• Utilizing metal current collectors on a polyimide substrate.
• Fabricating an interfacial enhanced symmetrical MSC (IE SMSC).

Main Results:

• Achieved over 3 times higher energy density compared to conventional MSCs.
• Maintained 92.9% capacitance after 5000 bending cycles.
• Expanded the potential window to 1.6 V in aqueous electrolyte.
• Significantly enhanced adhesion at active material/current collector and current collector/substrate interfaces.

Conclusions:

• The bioinspired 3D interlocking strategy effectively enhances interfacial adhesion and mechanical stability in flexible MSCs.
• This approach significantly improves energy density and capacitance retention.
• The strategy offers a promising direction for developing high-performance, durable flexible electronic devices.