Decorated bacteria-cellulose ultrasonic metasurface.

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Nanotechnology
• Biomaterials

Background:

• Cellulose is attractive for biocompatible devices but suffers from poor water stability.
• Hydrophilic properties of cellulose limit its mechanical stability in aqueous environments.
• Developing robust and functional cellulose-based materials remains a challenge.

Purpose of the Study:

• To engineer a water-stable, flexible, and repairable cellulose-based material.
• To create functional ultrasonic metasurfaces for advanced imaging applications.
• To demonstrate the potential of this material in chip-scale biomedical devices.

Main Methods:

• Decoration of bacteria-cellulose with silicon dioxide (SiO2) nanoparticles.
• Fabrication of ultrathin meta-skin with paper-cutting techniques.
• Development of ultrasonic metasurfaces for acoustic holography and 3D imaging.

Main Results:

• Achieved superior water stability and mechanical properties in the decorated meta-skin.
• Demonstrated precise pattern generation (~10 μm) using meta-skin paper-cutting.
• Fabricated ultrathin (~20 μm), lightweight (<20 mg) chip-scale devices for ultrasound imaging.
• Realized complex acoustic holograms and high-resolution 3D ultrasound imaging.

Conclusions:

• The SiO2-nanoparticle-decorated bacteria-cellulose meta-skin offers a promising solution for water-stable flexible devices.
• This metamaterial platform enables functionality customization for advanced biomedical engineering.
• The developed ultrasonic metasurfaces pave the way for novel applications in ultrasound technology.