Much can be learned about a person's fitness and environment by direct sensing at the skin's surface. The capabilities of such sensors are determined by the material properties of the substrate that interfaces the skin and electronics package. These substrates must provide the following: (1) tough and conformal contact with the skin, and (2) transmission of chemical, mechanical or electronic signal from the skin to the electronics package. Polysaccharide composites are ideal for developing epidermal bioelectronics because they can exhibit a high strength/weight ratio, and their functional surface chemistry provides facile routes to tailor electronic activity and analyte transmission across the biological-electronic interface. Demonstrating a capability to fabricate conformal, biocompatible substrates with tunable chemical permeability and electronic properties is essential for truly integrating biology and electronics across the epidermal surface.<br/><br/>Our current research is exploring the chemical, mechanical, and electronic properties of conformal circuit boards to develop polysaccharide substrates that enable epidermal bioelectronics. The molecular weight and crystallinity of the polysaccharides are critical components in determining the resultant chemical and mechanical properties of the material. Side-chain modification of the basic polysaccharides have provided the requisite toughness to form an epidermal substrate — thin enough to adhere by van der Waals forces but robust enough avoid failure of the electronics package due to mechanical deformation. Novel trace architectures and materials are being explored for stretchable electronic devices.

Polysaccharide circuit boards for epidermal electronics

249th National Meeting (2015)

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