Rapid prototyping and facile customization of conductive hydrogel bioelectronics based on all laser process

Area of Science:

• Bioelectronics
• Materials Science
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Customization of implantable bioelectronics is crucial for stable bio-signal recording.
• Conventional photolithography for bioelectronics is costly and complex for organ-specific designs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a rapid prototyping strategy for customized bioelectronics using all-laser processes.
• To overcome the limitations of high cost and complex steps in fabricating implantable devices.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a single ultraviolet (UV) pulse laser for selective laser processing.
• Fabricated conductive hydrogels from PEDOT:PSS and patterned encapsulation layers using UV-curing.
• Incorporated mesh structures via selective laser cutting for high stretchability (>100%).

Main Results:

• Achieved rapid prototyping of a 1 cm² stretchable microelectrode array in under 10 minutes.
• Demonstrated low impedances (∼1.1 kΩ at 1 kHz) for the fabricated microelectrode array.
• Successfully recorded cardiac signals from rats with varying health states using the optimized device.

Conclusions:

• The all-laser rapid prototyping strategy offers a cost-effective and efficient method for creating customized bioelectronics.
• The developed stretchable microelectrode arrays show potential for effective in-vivo bio-signal monitoring.
• This technique facilitates the optimization of bioelectronic devices for diverse organ geometries and applications.