Preparation of superhydrophobic and antibacterial paper-based piezoresistive pressure sensor for human motion detection

Paper emerges as an ideal substrate for flexible piezoresistive pressure sensors (PRSs) due to its inherent flexibility, cost-effectiveness, renewability, and lightweight properties. However, the intrinsic hydrophilicity of original paper poses substantial challenges for practical sensor applications. Herein, we coated Ti 3 C 2 T x @ZIF-8@PDA@AgNPs (TZPA) and PDMS/CaCO 3 on the surface of paper by facile spray-coating technique to prepare paper-based superhydrophobic flexible PRSs. By employing a bioinspired micro-cracked architecture derived from crustacean sensory systems, the sensor exhibited exceptional sensing properties: three linear sensitivity regions (S 1  = 1.36 kPa −1 , 0–3 kPa; S 2  = 8.71 kPa −1 , 3–10 kPa; S 3  = 0.81 kPa −1 , 10–30 kPa), rapid response/recovery times (98.1/97.9 ms), and stable operation over 500 cycles. The superhydrophobic PDMS/CaCO 3 layer, with its micro-nano structure and low surface energy, imparted the paper-based sensor with excellent waterproofing (water contact angle ∼151.1° and water sliding angle ∼9°), self-cleaning, and synergistic antibacterial properties when combined with the TZPA layer. Finally, the fabricated paper-based PRS demonstrated real-time detection capabilities for human bodily motions (including large/small movements) even under high-moisture conditions and underwater. Presented here is an environmentally friendly and simple method for fabricating superhydrophobic paper-based PRSs which have significant potential in the fields of wearable electronics, healthcare surveillance and human–computer interaction, even in aqueous environments.