A Comprehensive Study of Piezoelectricity in Chitosan Films

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Biomedical Engineering
• Polymer Science

Background:

• Chitosan films are flexible, biocompatible piezoelectric materials.
• They are of interest for health monitoring technologies.
• Their piezoelectric performance depends on fabrication and crystallinity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the piezoelectric performance of solution-cast chitosan films.
• To correlate processing parameters with crystalline content and piezoelectric behavior.
• To reliably determine converse piezoelectricity in chitosan films.

Main Methods:

• Solution-casting of chitosan films.
• Physico-chemical characterizations to assess crystallinity.
• Constant-excitation frequency-modulation piezoresponse force microscopy (CE-FM-PFM) for reliable piezoelectric measurements.

Main Results:

• Processing parameters significantly affect chitosan film crystallinity.
• A post-processing strategy (NaOH treatment + thermal annealing) enhanced piezoelectric response.
• Achieved a piezoelectric coefficient (d33) of 27 pm V⁻¹, nearly double previous reports.

Conclusions:

• Chitosan film processing is key to optimizing piezoelectric properties.
• Enhanced piezoelectricity in chitosan films opens avenues for biomedical applications.
• Developed eco-friendly piezoelectric materials for advanced health monitoring.