Visualization and standardized quantification of surface charge density for triboelectric materials

• Published in: Nature communications 2024-07, Vol.15 (1), p.6004-14, Article 6004
• Main Authors: Li, Yi, Luo, Yi, Xiao, Song, Zhang, Cheng, Pan, Cheng, Zeng, Fuping, Cui, Zhaolun, Huang, Bangdou, Tang, Ju, Shao, Tao, Zhang, Xiaoxing, Xiong, Jiaqing, Wang, Zhong Lin
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 639/766; 639/925; Carrier traps; Charge density; Charge materials; Current carriers; Design standards; Electric corona; Electrification; Electrostatic properties; Humanities and Social Sciences; multidisciplinary; Nanogenerators; Polytetrafluoroethylene; Regularization; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Surface charge; Surface stability; Tuning; Visualization
• ISSN: 2041-1723; 2041-1723
• DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-49660-9

Triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) operates on the principle of utilizing contact electrification and electrostatic induction. However, visualization and standardized quantification of surface charges for triboelectric materials remain challenging. Here, we report a surface charge visualization and standardized quantification method using electrostatic surface potential measured by Kevin probe and the iterative regularization strategy. Moreover, a tuning strategy on surface charge is demonstrated based on the corona discharge with a three-electrode design. The long-term stability and dissipation mechanisms of the injected negative or positive charges demonstrate high dependence on deep carrier traps in triboelectric materials. Typically, we achieved a 70-fold enhancement on the output voltage (~135.7 V) for the identical polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) based TENG (neg-PTFE/PTFE or posi-PTFE/PTFE triboelectric pair) with stable surface charge density (5% decay after 140 days). The charged PTFE was demonstrated as a robot e-skins for non-contact perception of object geometrics. This work provides valuable tools for surface charge visualization and quantification, giving a new strategy for a deeper understanding of contact electrification. A surface charge visualization and standardized quantification method and surface charge tuning is achieved for triboelectric materials, delivering essential tools for contact electrification and high-performance triboelectric nanogenerators.