Porous film sensor
A method of forming a film is described. The method begins by forming a mixture including a polymer and a plurality of unordered nanomaterial. The film is dried and a plurality of pores is formed within the film. A sensitive film transducer capable of detecting changes in pressure and applied force can be made using this method.
1. A method of forming a film, comprising:
forming a mixture including a polymer and a plurality of unordered nanomaterial;
forming a film using said mixture;
drying said film; and
forming a plurality of pores within said film.
2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein said nanomaterial is nanowires.
3. The method according to claim 1 , wherein said polymer is electrically insulating.
4. The method according to claim 1 , wherein said nanomaterial is carbon nanotubes.
5. The method according to claim 4 , wherein said carbon nanotubes are electrically conducting.
6. The method according to claim 5 , wherein said carbon nanotubes are multi-walled carbon nanotubes.
7. The method according to claim 5 , wherein said carbon nanotubes are single-walled carbon nanotubes.
8. The method according to claim 5 , wherein said carbon nanotubes contain a mixture of single-walled and multi-walled carbon nanotubes.
9. The method of claim 5 wherein said pores separate said nanotubes in said film.
10. The method according to claim 5 , wherein said mixture includes a isopropyl alcohol.
11. The method according to claim 10 , wherein said step of forming said pores comprises:
evaporating said isoproplyl alcohol in said film to form said pores.
12. The method according to claim 10 , wherein said film has a uniform thickness in the range of 100 nanometers to 1000 micrometers.
13. The method according to claim 12 , wherein said film is 0.5 mm thick.
14. The method according to claim 12 , wherein said step of drying said film comprises:
heating said film for a predetermined amount of time at a predetermined temperature.
15. The method according to claim 14 , wherein said step of heating comprises:
heating said film for between about 20 to about 600 minutes.
16. The method according to claim 14 , wherein said step of heating comprises:
heating said film for 120 minutes.
17. The method according to claim 14 , wherein said step of heating said film comprises:
heating said film at a temperature between the range of about 25 to about 90 degrees Celsius.
18. The method according to claim 14 , wherein said step of heating comprises:
heating said film at a temperature of substantially 60 degrees Celsius.
19. The method according to claim 14 , wherein said step of heating comprises:
heating said film under a specified pressure.
20. The method according to claim 14 , wherein said step of heating comprises:
heating said film under a pressure in a range from substantially 0.001 to substantially 1 atm.
21. The method according to claim 14 , wherein said pores have sizes which range from substantially 100 nanometers to 500 micrometers.
22. The method according to claim 21 , wherein said pores have uniform sizes.
23. The method according to claim 21 , wherein said pores have a range of sizes.
24. The method according to claim 21 , wherein a density of said pores in said film is between 5 to 75 percent by volume.
25. The method according to claim 21 , wherein characteristics of said film changes significantly in pressure range of substantially 0.5 kPa to 100 kPa.