High-stability flexible thin-film temperature sensor using MWCNTs-toughened Peano structure

Characterized by thinness, lightness and flexibility, flexible thin-film temperature sensors can be tightly fitted to different shapes of surfaces to measure their surface temperatures. However, the deformation in sensor installation and stress caused during temperature testing can lead to the deterioration in testing capability of the sensor. In this paper, the Peano structure is used to optimize the thin-film design for reducing the internal stress value. Additionally, multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) are doped into the thermoelectric material (Indium oxide, In₂O₃) to construct a powder-fiber staggered adhesive thin-film micro-structure, with the parameters involved in the co-conformal deposition of the thin-film optimized. Unaffected by force/deformation, a thermocouple-type flexible thin-film temperature sensor with high stability and reliability is developed. This sensor is considered promising for contact/non-contact (gas/liquid shock, etc.) measurement.