As the Fourth Industrial Revolution era, in which virtual reality and augmented reality concepts coexist, has arrived, the importance of human–machine interface technologies between people and machines or electronic devices is being emphasized. Various interface technologies have been proposed to realize new-concept technologies, and motion sensors that detect human movement are emerging as a core technology.

Motion sensors are also expected to be applied to enhance athletes’ performance by analyzing joint range of motion or to prevent disease and support rehabilitation by analyzing people’s gait.

The self-powered motion sensor technology that can accelerate the practical application of such future technologies has been developed by Jeonbuk National University (JBNU) Professor Jinsoo Kim’s team (College of Engineering, Division of Advanced Materials Engineering). It is attracting significant attention from the global academic and industrial communities.

The Kim research team announced that it succeeded in developing a self-powered human motion detection sensor based on compound semiconductor nanostructures.

The research results were published on April 15 in the latest issue of the internationally renowned journal Chemical Engineering Journal (IF: 15.1), and the team secured related fundamental technology through a patent registration.

Existing motion sensors mainly detect changes in resistance or capacitance caused by mechanical deformation. They have low sensitivity, complex device structures, and require external power supplies, which limit miniaturization.

To address these issues, the team sought to exploit the piezoelectric effect that occurs in semiconductor nanostructures. The piezoelectric effect refers to the phenomenon in which applying mechanical pressure generates a voltage, and applying a voltage induces mechanical deformation.

By using the piezoelectric polarization characteristics arising from mechanical deformation of semiconductor nanostructures to replace additional power supplies, the research team simplified the manufacturing process and achieved device miniaturization.

Principal Investigator (PI) Professor Jinsoo Kim said, “The greatest significance of this research is that we secured high-quality compound semiconductor nanostructure fabrication and high-performance self-powered human motion detection sensor fabrication technologies, and demonstrated the potential for practical application in the medical field. In particular, I believe it is an outstanding outcome that the student who participated in the experiments and manuscript preparation (first author, Ph.D. candidate Shin Jae-hyeok) gained valuable experience that will help him grow as a researcher in advanced science and technology.” 

Meanwhile, this research was supported by the Research Foundation and the 4th phase of the BK21 Project.