Effect of finger geometries on strain response of interdigitated capacitor based soft strain sensors
Abstract
The finger geometry of embedded elastomeric comb capacitors significantly affects the electromechanical response of interdigitated capacitor (IDC) based soft sensors. When strain is applied to these IDC based soft sensors, the embedded soft combs are deformed, changing the sensor's capacitance to detect a variety of different mechanical loads. To better understand the effect of design parameters on sensor sensitivity, a comprehensive closed-form analytical model using geometric stretch and a parallel plate capacitance model in combination with a coplanar waveguide model to predict the strain response as a function of finger geometry and load orientation were developed. To validate this model, we compare the predicted response with computational and experimental methods using sensors with a combination of two different finger thicknesses and widths in a 4 mm2 area. Strong agreement was shown in all three results from the analytical model, the finite element analysis simulations, and the experiments validating that the sensitivity of IDC soft strain sensors can be tuned by finger geometry.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Pub Defense Publication
- Publication Date
- Jan 22, 2018
- Source ID
- 10.1063/1.4998440
Entities
People
- Hee-Sup Shin
- Sarah Bergbreiter
Organizations
- Air Force Office of Scientific Research
- University of Maryland