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Additive manufacturing approaches, from spray-coating through drop-on-demand inkjet printing to aerosol jet printing, are used hierarchically to fabricate ultralight, flexible, compatible, nanocomposite sensors with the ability to respond precisely to high-frequency guided ultrasonic waves, yet not at the cost of sacrificing the integrity of host structures. The nanostructure of individual sensing element is morphologically optimized to facilitate triggering of a local quantum tunneling effect when modulated by ultrasonic waves. This study has spotlighted a new breed of functional composites with an endowed capability of self-health monitoring. Not only does it reduce the weight and volume penalties to composites, it also minimizes possible mechanical degradation due to sensor intrusion, blazing a trail in developing “sensor-free” SHM for composites.
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