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Self-healing soft electronics

Nature Electronics volume 2, pages 144–150 (2019)Cite this article

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Abstract

Biological systems have the powerful ability to self-heal. Human skin can, for example, autonomously heal from wounds of various degrees, allowing it to restore its mechanical and electrical properties. In contrast, human-made electronic devices degrade over time due to fatigue, corrosion or damage incurred during operation, leading to device failure. Self-healing chemistry has emerged in recent years as a promising method for constructing soft electronic materials that are mechanically robust and can self-repair. Here we review the development of self-healing electronic materials and examine how such materials can be used to fabricate self-healing electronic devices. We explore the potential new functionalities of self-healing electronic systems that would not typically be possible with conventional electronic systems and discuss the current challenges in delivering self-healing soft electronics for practical applications.

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Fig. 1: Self-healing soft electronics.
Fig. 2: Artificial self-healing systems.
Fig. 3: Self-healing process of electronic materials.
Fig. 4: Self-healing electronic devices.
Fig. 5: Self-healing electronic system.

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Acknowledgements

J.K. and Z.B. acknowledge support by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research (grant no. FA9550-18-1-0143) and Samsung Electronics.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemical Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA

    Jiheong Kang, Jeffrey B.-H. Tok & Zhenan Bao

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  1. Jiheong Kang
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J.K and Z.B conceived the project and carried out the discussions. J.K., J.B.-H.T. and Z.B wrote the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Zhenan Bao.

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Kang, J., Tok, J.BH. & Bao, Z. Self-healing soft electronics. Nat Electron 2, 144–150 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41928-019-0235-0

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