| With the development of electronic information technology and sensor technology, Implantable electronic devices are widely used. Implantable electrodes, as core pieces in implantable electronic devices, function as intelligent bio-electronic interfaces interact with biological systems for monitoring and modulation of physiological activity, which provide technologies and devices for diagnosis and therapy of diseases and injuries. It plays an important role in the application of implantable electronic device. Due to implantable electrodes directly contacting with biological tissues and organs, capability of information communication, biocompatibility and stable robustness need to be fully considered when the electrodes being designed and developed. We propose to develop stretchable microelectrode arrays, which are capable of monitoring and modulating biological activity while being deformed and stretched under large bi-axial strains. Moreover, sciatic nerve, brain cortex, and heart will be targeted for implantable applications research, and matches on softness, conformal attach, and dynamic deformation between stretchable microelectrode arrays and those biological tissues are proposed to be studied, respectively.Now there are many new applications that require electronics to have higher deformability to meet the needs of being stretched, compressed and twisted. Therefore, stretchability and conductivity are the keys for the study of electronics. This project intends to develop novel stretchable electrodes with multi-layer composite structures to improve the performance of the electrode through changing the structure of the electrode. On the basis of bi-axial flexible stretchable electrodes using mathematically mature percolation theory to make a bold change for flexible electrode structure, Layers of nano crack gold films with a large deformation of flexible base are connected by the nano island structure, integrated as a whole which will make a large scale enhancement of stretchability and good signal conduction ability of flexible electrode. And on this basis to optimize the processing technology of the single flexible stretchable electrodes and to explore the best method of preparation of nano island structure, which will play a promoting role to a large extent for improving the property of novel stretchable electrodes with multi-layer composite structures. Moreover, due to the special properties including the size, thickness, softness, traditional test equipment and methods are suitable for rigid material with large size will be difficult to achieve the performance characterization. Methods of measuring the electronic properties of stretchable electrodes will be developed and the stretchability mechanism will be investigated deeply in this work. We will also compute and simulate the stretchability of the structure according to the well established percolation theory in Mathematics and compare them with experiment results, in order to improve the experimental design. The implementation of this project will provide important theory, methods and technique for design, development and application of the stretchable electrodes, and consequently make contributions to the applications of stretchable electrodes on implantable electronic device and smart wearable device. |
