Permeable and washable electronics based on polyamide fibrous membrane for wearable applications

Abstract Integrating electronics in clothing is a significant milestone of wearable technology. The priority is to develop flexible interconnector with great washability, durability and comfort wearability. In this work, we reported an air-permeable and machine-washable Cu/Ni interconnector based on highly flexible fibrous polyimide (FPI) membrane. Benefiting from the porous merit of FPI membrane and robust parylene encapsulation, the novel interconnector presents excellent conductivity (14 mΩ/sq), decent air-permeability (11 KPa*s/m) and superior electromechanical stability after abrasion of 50,000 cycles, bending of 10,000 cycles, and machine washing of 50 times. Moreover, assemblies made from the FPI-based circuit board not only show desirable lifespan in harsh environments, including seawater, ice, boiled water, and heavy rain, but also can be woven into fabrics for broad wearable applications. The work presents a facile and effective method to fabricate highly flexible, comfortable and durable interconnector, guaranteeing the reliability for long-term wearable application and showing great possibility for high-throughput production.