Communications of the ACM
The Body Electric: Researchers Move Closer to Low-Cost, Implantable Electronics
A silicon circuit, coated with a protective layer and immersed in fluid that mimics human body chemistry.
Credit: Ohio State University
Ohio State University (OSU) researchers say they are developing technology that could lead to low-cost electronic devices that work in direct contact with living tissue inside the body.
The first planned use of the technology is a sensor that will detect the very early stages of organ transplant rejection.
One of the hurdles to the development of implantable sensors has been that most existing electronics are based on silicon, and electrolytes in the body interfere with the electrical signals in silicon circuits. "The challenge is to bridge the gap between the affordable, silicon-based electronics we already know how to build, and the electrochemical systems of the human body," says OSU professor Paul Berger.
The researchers say they have developed a new coating that could bridge that gap. They tested whether electrolytes could be blocked from entering silicon with a layer of aluminum oxide and determined that the oxide coating effectively blocked electrolytes from the solution so the sensors remained fully functional.
A device using the technology could detect certain proteins the body produces when it is just beginning to reject a transplanted organ. Berger says the work represents the first step toward creating devices that could be implanted in the body long-term.
From OSU News
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