Transition Metal Chalcogenide-Based Flexible and Wearable Sensors

Abstract

In recent years, the exploration of two-dimensional material-based sensors has proven to be attractive for the fabrication of flexible and wearable sensors, especially in the area of home security and human health monitoring. Traditional materials that are used for flexible sensors include silicon, inorganic oxides, and polymers, however, they encountered many drawbacks, including rigidity, low conductivity, and high cost, limiting their practical applicability. Transition metal chalcogenides (TMCs; mono- and di-) are a class of two-dimensional compounds (metal sulfides) that have shown application in the field of flexible and wearable sensors because of their unique layer structure. TMCs possess tunable properties such as semiconducting-metallic transition, direct-indirect band transition, flexibility, and transparency, which allow them to be promising materials for flexible and wearable sensors. Herein, we discuss the underlying mechanism of TMC-based architectures and their structural components for constructing flexible and wearable sensors. The significant properties of 2D nanoarchitecture-based sensors such as unique structural as well as electronic properties and surface chemistry are also reviewed. Furthermore, we review the recent advances in 2D materials in the field of flexible and wearable sensors, more significantly, how its structure-property relationship influences fabrication technology. In conclusion, challenges and outlooks for 2D-based TMCs for the development of flexible and wearable sensors are also proposed.