Pressure-sensitive field-effect transistor sensor array fabricated from a piezoelectric polyvinylidene fluoride film

A tactile sensor was fabricated from piezoelectric polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) films coupled to a silicon wafer substrate containing an array of MOSFETs. The integrated circuit incorporated 25 sensor elements arranged in a 5*5 grid. Sensor configurations using varying thickness of PVDF film were fabricated, and the individual elements of each configuration were evaluated. The sensor based on the 25- mu m-thick PVDF film was judged to be the optimal sensor configuration because of its bias response time and its linear operation over the load range tested. No significant coupling between nearest-neighbor sensor elements was observed.>