Flexoelectric response in soft polyurethane films and their use for large curvature sensing

International audienceThe flexoelectric effect is simply defined as the coupling between the strain gradient and polarization in solid dielectrics. It may be seen as an alternative transduction mechanism to the piezoelectric effect to directly sense the curvature of bent flexible thin structures. In the case of large curvatures, flexible and compliant sensors are required and soft polar elastomers may be suitable for curvature sensing. In this study, we report the flexoelectric characterization of soft semi-crystalline polyurethane (PU) films with thicknesses ranging from 1.7 μm to 350 μm. Dynamic bending experiments have been performed on PU films deposited onto rigid steel substrates in the vicinity of the mechanical resonance frequency of the cantilever beams. Quasi-static flexoelectric coefficients of PU films could be obtained by using a classical oscillating model. A global large increase of μ′12 with the decreasing film thickness was found, especially for thicknesses lower than 25 μm. The variation of μ′12 is explained by the presence of a Young's Modulus gradient through the thickness of PU films. Besides, a concomitant uncommon dramatic decrease in the dielectric constant is observed. The combination of these two effects contributes to enhancing the flexocoupling “F” constant with the decreasing thickness. At last, the potential use of a 6.6 μm-thick soft PU film as a large curvature sensor has been experimentally demonstrated by subjecting a flexible Aluminum foil/Polyethylene terephthalate bilayered cantilever to large deflections. A curvature of about 80 m−1 (radius of curvature of ∼1.2 cm) could be sensed under low frequency (3 Hz) bending motion. These results may pave the way for the development of low cost and easy to implement soft flexoelectric elastomer-based large curvature sensors on highly flexible metallic structures