Impact of Dispersion Uniformity on the Conductivity of Carbon Nanotubes Based Tactile Sensor: A Tunneling Theory Approach

The advancement of tactile sensors has become pivotal in the development of robotics and artificial intelligence, enabling machines to replicate the human sense of touch with increased precision. Among various materials, carbon nanotubes are extensively studied for enhancing tactile sensors due to their exceptional conductivity and mechanical strength when used in polymer-based composites. This study, based on tunneling theory, constructs a conductive grid model and employs limit concepts and slicing methods to analyze the impact of central carbon nanotube position on the total conductivity of each unit. The results demonstrate that uniform dispersion of carbon nanotubes significantly enhances the electrical performance of composite materials. This finding further emphasizes the importance of ultrasonic dispersion techniques in preparation process of carbon nanotube composite materials. Insights from this research not only provide a crucial theoretical basis for using ultrasonic technology to optimize the structure and properties of composite materials but also offer guidance for manufacturing high-performance flexible electronic devices.