Figure 1

(a) Fabrication process for the load-bearing supercapacitor fabrics by using activated carbon fiber threads. (b) The activation process of a carbon fiber, after which the carbon fiber has a nanoporous surface and a solid core with high mechanical strength. (c) Cross-section schematics of the supercapacitor fabrics showing two crossing threads as positive and negative electrodes, respectively, with a solid electrolyte layer in between. (d) Measured specific surface area and tensile strength of carbon fiber threads with no-activation (CF-A0), after one-activation (CF-A1), and after two-activation (CF-A2) processes. The surface area increases dramatically after the two-activation process while the mechanical strength remains high. (e) The cyclic voltammetry curves showing the EDL capacitances of two-electrode cells using different carbon fibers tested in 1 M H₃PO₄ solution. The current is normalized by the length of the thread electrode dipped into the electrolyte solution. (f) A watchstrap made of load bearing supercapacitor fabrics powering a screen on a human wrist.