Polymer-based materials for achieving high energy density film capacitors

Abstract

Film capacitors with high energy storage are becoming particularly important with the development of advanced electronic and electrical power systems. Polymer-based materials have stood out from other materials and have become the main dielectrics in film capacitors because of their flexibility, cost-effectiveness, and tailorable functional properties. A core issue for achieving films with high performance is to process a material with high dielectric permittivity and breakdown strength but low dielectric loss. Nanocomposites and all-polymer dielectrics are two promising avenues to address this issue. Thus, in this work, the advances of the past decade are highlighted to reflect the latest developments in polymer-based film dielectrics. The key factors of dielectric properties, including polarization mechanisms, dielectric breakdown strength, filler–matrix interface, and hierarchical structures are discussed in detail. A comprehensive understanding of the fabrication of polymer-based materials with special constituents, molecular segments, and microstructures will provide guidance to engineers on the fabrication of polymer-based materials with high performance.