Fibrous MXene Synapse-Based Biomimetic Tactile Nervous System for Multimodal Perception and Memory

Area of Science:

• Materials Science and Engineering
• Biomedical Engineering
• Wearable Technology

Background:

• Biomimetic tactile nervous systems (BTNS) are crucial for wearable technology due to their biological similarity, low power needs, and integrated perception-memory capabilities.
• Existing research primarily focuses on planar BTNS, with limited exploration of fibrous BTNS (FBTNS), which offer superior flexibility, weavability, and integration potential.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose and develop a novel fibrous biomimetic tactile nervous system (FBTNS) with multimodal sensory and memory functions.
• To demonstrate the FBTNS's ability to perceive stimuli, generate synaptic responses, and exhibit synaptic plasticity for memory simulation.
• To integrate the FBTNS into textiles for tactile arrays, enabling biomimetic tactile perception and temporary memory for human-computer interaction.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of a FBTNS by combining a fibrous poly lactic acid (PLA)/Ag/MXene/Pt artificial synapse with a MXene/EMIMBF4 ionic conductive elastomer.
• Characterization of the FBTNS's sensory response, including response time and power consumption.
• Evaluation of synaptic plasticity under mechanical and electrical stimuli and integration into textile-based tactile arrays.

Main Results:

• The FBTNS successfully perceived external stimuli and generated synaptic responses with a short response time (23 ms) and low power consumption (17 nW).
• The device exhibited significant synaptic plasticity under both mechanical and electrical stimuli, effectively simulating memory functions.
• Textile-integrated FBTNS arrays demonstrated successful implementation of biomimetic tactile perception and temporary memory.

Conclusions:

• The developed FBTNS effectively generates biomimetic synaptic signals, serving as artificial tactile sensing signals.
• This fibrous system offers a fabric electronic unit with integrated perception and memory for human-computer interaction.
• The FBTNS holds significant potential for creating lightweight and comfortable brain-computer interfaces.