Enhancing the output of triboelectric nanogenerator by embedding SrTiO3 nanoparticles into polydimethylsiloxane films

To improve the output power of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)-based triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs), SrTiO3 (STO), which is a high-k material, nanoparticles (NPs) was embedded into the PDMS films because the relative permittivity of triboelectric films is proportional to the output power. The STO NPs/PDMS composite films showed a maximum output power density of approximately 3.6 W m−2 at the content of the STO NPs of 20 vol%. To further boost the output power, we measured the output power at a contact/separation tapping frequency of 5 Hz. The maximum output power density was approximately 32.4 W m−2. This method is expected to be applicable to various material combinations for TENGs.