Dr. John Rogers, 'Transient Electronics'

Abstract: A remarkable feature of modern integrated circuit technology is its ability to operate, almost indefinitely, in a stable, reliable fashion, without physical or chemical change. Recently developed classes of electronic materials create an opportunity to engineer the opposite outcome, in the form of devices that dissolve, in a controlled fashion, completely and harmlessly in ground water or biofluids [1,2]. See Figure 1 below.
Enabled applications include zero-impact environmental monitors, 'green' consumer electronics and temporary bioelectronic implants. This presentation describes foundational concepts in chemistry, materials science and assembly processes for these types of technologies. Wireless sensors of intracranial temperature, pressure and electrophysiology designed to monitor recovery from traumatic brain injury [3,4], and electrical stimulators configured to accelerate healing in damaged peripheral nerves [5] provide application examples of transient biomedical devices.

References:
1. S.-W. Hwang, et al, “A Physically Transient Form of Silicon Electronics,” Science 337, 1640-1644 (2012).
2. S.-W. Hwang, et al, “25th Anniversary Article: Materials for High-Performance Biodegradable Semiconductor Devices,” Advanced Materials 26, 1992–2000 (2014).
3. S.-K. Kang, et al, “Bioresorbable Silicon Electronic Sensors for the Brain,” Nature 530, 71–76 (2016).
4. K.J. Yu, et al, “Bioresorbable Silicon Electronics for Transient Spatiotemporal Mapping of Electrical Activity from the Cerebral Cortex,” Nature Materials 15, 782-791 (2016).
5. Unpublished results.