Highly sensitive piezoresistive pressure sensors based on laser-induced graphene with molybdenum disulfide nanoparticles

Wearable pressure sensors have drawn significant attention because of their extensive applications in motion detection, tactile sensing, and health monitoring. However, the complex manufacturing process and high cost of active materials make low-cost, large-scale production elusive. In this work, we report a flexible piezoresistive pressure sensor assembled with two 3D laser-induced graphene (LIG) foam electrodes on a polyimide thin film from a simple laser scribing process in the ambient environment. The design of the air gap between the two foam electrodes allows the sensor to showcase a low limit of detection of 0.274 Pa, which provides favorable sensing performance in motion detection and wrist pulse monitoring. The addition of spherical MoS₂ nanoparticles between the two foam electrodes further enhances the sensitivity to 88 kPa⁻¹ and increases the sensing range to significantly outperform the previous literature reports. The demonstrated LIG pressure sensors also exhibit fast response/recovery rates and excellent durability/repeatability.