A kirigami-enabled mechanoreceptor-inspired tactile sensor with spatially multidirectional force decoding

Flexible tactile sensors capable of resolving complex mechanical stimuli are essential for advanced electronic skins. However, simultaneous perception of force magnitude, direction, and dynamic loading remains challenging without complex circuitry. Here, we report a kirigami-enabled, skin-inspired flexible sensor that achieves spatially distributed receptor-like responses through a three-dimensional (3D) laser-induced graphene (LIG) network. By transferring LIG from a kirigami-engineered polyimide substrate, we transform a planar conductive layer into a 3D architecture with height-dependent electrical characteristics. This structural differentiation enables spatially-encoded electromechanical transduction, where heterogeneous sensitivities across the 3D-LIG network translate simple stimuli into high-dimensional signal features. Consequently, the architecture inherently decouples force amplitude from dynamic loading through its non-linear deformation profiles. By further leveraging kirigami-induced anisotropy, the sensor achieves simultaneous resolution of multidirectional force vectors without requiring complex peripheral circuitry. The sensor demonstrates a linear pressure range of 0-35 kPa and high durability over 10,000 cycles. Leveraging this “structural coding” paradigm, the device enables high-accuracy recognition of surface roughness (95.34%) and gait patterns (91.77%) via machine learning. This work offers a robust strategy for biomimetic tactile sensing by integrating 3D structural engineering with intrinsic multidimensional signal decoupling. This design provides a promising foundation for intelligent prosthetics and human machine interfaces, achieving force vector resolution within a single structure.