Self-powered, touchless, interface-friendly cellulose fabric-based sensor via electrostatic flocking strategy.

As digital transformation accelerates globally, safeguarding personal data privacy has become increasingly important. Nonetheless, residual fingerprints from password entry pose a subtle yet significant risk for privacy leaks due to their persistence. Herein, by engineering micro-feathered triboelectric surfaces, incorporating fabric electrodes, and employing electrostatic flocking technologies. These efforts culminated in the creation of a triboelectric nylon/nickel-plated cellulose fabric-based sensor layer adorned with micro-feather structures, situated atop a high-surface-area, plush, and user-friendly electrode substrate. Consequently, we have pioneered a scalable, single-electrode, dual-modality, self-powered tactile sensor based on flocking-structured cellulose fabric for triboelectric nanogeneration (CF-TENG). With an effective size of 5 × 5 cm squared and outstanding electrical characteristics (210 V, 100 nA) at a pile height of 0.6 mm, the device adeptly detects movements beyond 20 cm without physical contact. Concept validation trials have demonstrated that CF-TENG can be effortlessly embedded into advanced security solutions like contactless password locks and tactile carpets. Our proposed flocked architecture streamlines the manufacturing of bi-modal, interface-friendly tactile sensors, paving the way for their deployment in intelligent security ecosystems.