Magnetic CoFe₂O₄-enhanced PDMS triboelectric nanogenerators for efficient energy harvesting and smart glove-based gesture recognition

A flexible single-electrode triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) with CoFe₂O₄/PDMS composite films provides a very promising solution for realizing environmental mechanical energy harvesting and self-powered sensing. However, the low output performance and poor environmental stability of traditional pure PDMS-based TENGs make them difficult to meet practical application demands. In this study, a flexible single-electrode TENG based on optimized 10:1 CoFe₂O₄/PDMS composite films was designed for ambient mechanical energy scavenging. A dual-functional composite film with high dielectric property and regulated surface roughness, which can significantly enhance electrical output and structural stability, was prepared to replace the pure PDMS triboelectric layer. Operated at a contact-separation frequency of 2 Hz, the TENG unit can generate an open-circuit voltage (Voc) of 7.2 V and a short-circuit current (Isc) of 3.8 μA. The maximum power of TENG is 15.87 μW under an external load resistance of 1 kΩ. The optimized TENG outperforms pure PDMS-based devices; a 1.0 μF capacitor can charge to 6.0 V within 50 s, powering commercial micro-sensors and lighting blue LEDs. This research aids developing dielectric-reinforced triboelectric composites and designing highly stable flexible TENGs.