Abstract: Conductive hydrogels amalgamate characteristics of both biomedical materials and conductive materials, finding applications in medical rehabilitation, motion monitoring, and human-machine interaction among others. To enhance the innovative awareness and experimental skills of undergraduate students majoring in flexible electronics, this experiment designs a conductive hydrogel crosslinked by nanogel materials. By exploring the initiator concentration and cross-linking mechanisms during the polymerization of co-polymeric hydrogels, the impact of material structural components on the durability and sensing performance of hydrogel-based flexible electronic devices were elucidated. Through taking part in this novel experimental design, undergraduates majored in flexible electronics can acquire key points on polymer emulsion polymerization, hydrogel synthesis, stress-strain sensing property characterization, gaining a deeper understanding of the influence of cross-linking agent structural design on material functionality. Additionally, this experiment developed a hydrogel based flexible and wearable sensing system based on hydrogel flexible electronic sensors. By integrating a smart glove capable of controlling a small car’s movement and a hydrogel controller for computer game control, we tightly merge cutting-edge research with undergraduate experimental teaching tasks. This integration is beneficial in stimulating the research interest and innovative exploration spirit among undergraduates majoring in flexible electronics, materials, and electronic information.

Key words: Flexible electronics, Emulsion polymerization, Conductive hydrogel, Nanogel, Flexible strain sensor