Initiatorless Solar Photopolymerization of Versatile and Sustainable Eutectogels as Multi-Response and Self-Powered Sensors for Human-Computer Interface

Eutectogels are emerging as an appealing soft conductor for self-powered sensing and the next generation of flexible human-computer interactive devices owing to their inherent mechanical elasticity and high ionic conductivity. However, it still remains a challenge to simultaneously achieve multi-functional and multi-response integrations through a facile and sustainable approach. Herein, a self-healing, environment tolerant, intrinsically conductive, and recyclable eutectogel with multiple responses is developed via one-step solar-initiated polymerization of deep eutectic solvents (DESs) and ionic liquids (ILs). Abundant hydrogen bonds and ion-dipole interactions impart eutectogels with high mechanical strength (8.8 MPa), ultra-stretchability (>1100%), strong self-adhesion (approximate to 12 MPa), recyclability, and autonomously self-healing ability. Furthermore, the intrinsically conductive eutectogels with appealing versatile sensations on strain, temperature, and humidity can serve as wearable sensors for wireless motion recognition and human-computer interaction control. More importantly, the eutectogel-assembled single-electrode triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) exhibits extreme environment-tolerant and fast self-healable properties that contribute to maintaining excellent and stable electrical outputs in a wide work temperature range (approximately -40-60 degrees C), which appear to be promising in self-powered flexible electronics with high environmental adaptability.