Robust Flexible Micro-Supercapacitors: Integrating High-Voltage Gel Polymer Electrolyte with Laser-Induced Graphene

Kurzfassung

Recently, supercapacitors (SCs) have emerged as one of the alternatives to traditional batteries and conventional capacitors. The rising demand for smart, wearable electronic has intensified the need for high-performance flexible micro-supercapacitors (MSCs) [1]. As part of the EU-funded GRAPHERGIA project under Graphene Flagship, this research focuses on developing sustainable energy conversion and storage system from the human interaction with the environment to electricity. Specially, the design of gel polymer electrolyte (GPE) integrated laser-scribed graphene electrodes based MSCs that will be coupled with energy harvesting triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) via innovative power management circuits to serve as energy reservoirs for battery-less, on-demand charging of wearable sensors has been reported [2]. This work details the development of MSCs using a high-voltage (> 3.2 V) GPE and highly porous laser-induced graphene (LIG) electrodes on flexible Kapton foil. The LIG electrodes were fabricated with the laser power at 40% of the maximum laser power (120 W) and the scanning speed at 300 mm s-1. The [EMIM][TFSI]/PPC/PC polymer electrolyte has been developed using [EMIM][TFSI] ionic liquid (IL) embedded in PPC and PC polymer matrix. Electrochemical analysis (CV, GCD, EIS and CCD) demonstrates that the MSC (Fig. 1) maintains stable performance up to 3.2 V. The device delivers an areal capacitance of 2.4 mF/cm2 and an areal energy density of 3.38 µWh/cm2, highlighting its potential for energy storage in next-generation smart textiles and the aerospace sector [3]. Acknowledgments This research work in GRAPHERGIA is supported by the European Union, under Horizon Europe program (Grant agreement No. 101120832). Selected references [1] Samartzis et al. ACS Omega 2026, 11, 14064-14072 [2] GRAPHERGIA – Powering the Future with Graphene [3] B. Saruhan et al. Materials Research Bulletin 180 (2024) 113052.