Abstract
Flexible electronics is a field gathering a growing interest among researchers and companies with widely varying applications, such as organic light emitting diodes, transistors as well as many different sensors. If the circuit should be portable or off-grid, the power sources available are batteries, supercapacitors or some type of power generator. Thermoelectric generators produce electrical energy by the diffusion of charge carriers in response to heat flux caused by a temperature gradient between junctions of dissimilar materials. As wearables, flexible electronics and intelligent packaging applications increase, there is a need for low-cost, recyclable and printable power sources. For such applications, printed thermoelectric generators (TEGs) are an interesting power source, which can also be combined with printable energy storage, such as supercapacitors. Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)-poly(styrenesulfonate), or PEDOT:PSS, is a conductive polymer that has gathered interest as a thermoelectric material. Plastic substrates are commonly used for printed electronics, but an interesting and emerging alternative is to use paper. In this article, a printed thermoelectric generator consisting of PEDOT:PSS and silver inks was printed on two common types of paper substrates, which could be used to power electronic circuits on paper.
Highlights
Flexible electronics is a field gathering a growing interest among researchers and companies
We present a thermoelectric generators (TEGs) consisting of PEDOT:PSS and silver (Ag) inks, which can be used to power electronic circuits on paper
The aim of the work is to study the effect that different paper substrates can have on the performance of PEDOT:PSS-based thermoelectric generators, compared to plastic substrates
Summary
Flexible electronics is a field gathering a growing interest among researchers and companies. The applications vary widely, as the term flexible and printed electronics encompass everything from Organic Light Emitting Diodes (OLEDs) and transistors, as well as a multitude of different sensors, and the fabrication of conductive tracks on non-standard substrates [1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11]. Micro LEDs are an interesting device that could be powered using a low power source [12,13,14]. If the circuit should be portable or off-grid, the power sources available are batteries, supercapacitors or some type of power generator [15,16,17]. To add batteries is not always possible, or limits the usefulness, shelf life or operating lifetime of the device
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
