Stretchable Conductors Enabled by Metal Coated Polymer Spheres

This paper presents a novel concept for stretchable conductors. Metal coated polymer spheres were densely packed in biocompatible silicone tubes. The resistivity of the conductors were in the approximate range of 1×10^-4 Ωm at 0% strain and 50% strain could be applied before degrading their electrical performance. Initial results showed good reproducibility and no drift in resistance values up to 1000 cycles with 0%-25% strain. This make the conductors well suited for digital low speed data transmission. The initial application is intended for integration of electronics in clothing; the conductors have been tested with success transmitting data from a commercial digital combined humidity and temperature sensor.