A stretchable knitted interconnect for three-dimensional curvilinear surfaces

This paper describes a novel method for fabricating stretchable electric interconnects on deformable curvilinear bodies. An interlaced interconnect integrated with a metal conductor and an elastic substrate has been proposed by using a super fine insulated metal conductor wire co-knitted into an elastic knitted fabric. Its electro-mechanical property was investigated by using a material tester with ball-punch attachment. The electrical conductivity of the elastic interconnect remains constant up to an average in-plan strain of 100%. The interlaced interconnect is able to survive in repeated three-dimensional deformation cycles where the membrane deformation of the substrate is the dominating mode of deformation. The number of cycles before failure can reach over 5000 at an average in-plane strain of 46%. The fatigue phenomenon is clearly related to the wire diameter and mechanical abrasion due to high levels of compression and friction between the metal wire and the ball.