[ad_1]
The team behind the high-tech electronic “e-skin” said it had the strength, extensibility and sensitivity of human skin, but could be used to collect important biological data in real time to monitor human skin. health of a person.
Researcher Yichen Cai said, “The ideal electronic skin will mimic the many natural functions of human skin, such as sensing temperature and touch, accurately and in real time.
“However, making electronic components flexible enough that can perform such delicate tasks while withstanding the knocks and scratches of everyday life is a challenge, and each material involved must be carefully designed.”
Most e-skins are made by layering an active nanomaterial on top of a stretchable surface that attaches to human skin, but so far the results have been mixed.
The connection between these layers is often either too weak, which reduces the durability and sensitivity of the material, or too strong, resulting in limited flexibility and making it more susceptible to cracking and breaking the circuit.
Professor Cai said, “The skin electronics landscape continues to change at a dramatic rate.
“The emergence of 2D sensors has accelerated efforts to integrate these atomically thin and mechanically strong materials into functional and durable artificial skins.”
The team led by Professor Cai and his colleague Jie Shen from King Abdullah University of Science and Technology in Saudi Arabia have now created a durable electronic skin using a hydrogel reinforced with silica nanoparticles and carbide. 2D titanium as the detection layer, bonded together with a conductive nanowire.
READ MORE: Touch-sensitive bionic skin created for robots
Professor Shen said, “Hydrogels contain over 70% water, which makes them very compatible with human skin tissue.”
By pre-stretching the hydrogel in all directions, applying a layer of nanowires, and then carefully controlling its release, the researchers created conductive pathways to the sensor layer that remained intact even when the material was stretched to 28. times its original size.
Their prototype e-skin could detect objects at a distance of eight inches, respond to stimuli in less than a tenth of a second and, when used as a pressure sensor, could distinguish handwriting.
These e-skins could monitor a range of biological information, such as changes in blood pressure, which can be detected from vibrations in the arteries to movement of the large limbs and joints. This data can then be shared and stored in the cloud via wifi.
Professor Cai said, “We see a future for this technology beyond biology.
“An expandable sensing tape could one day monitor the structural health of inanimate objects, such as furniture and airplanes.”
[ad_2]
Source link