Soft, biocompatible materials and skin-like electronics as wearable devices: an interview with John A. Rogers.

Abstract

Recent advances in active materials, micro-fabrication techniques, ultra-miniaturized design approaches and hybrid device layouts form the foundations for emerging classes of unusual systems that can capture physiological signals from the human body in a physically imperceptible fashion at nearly any anatomical location, external on the skin or internal on vital organ systems. Of particular interest with these technologies are their thin geometries, flexible/stretchable physical properties and unique form factors, to enable conformal and gentle contacts with soft, curved and dynamic surfaces of living tissues. Commercial embodiments of skin-integrated devices with clinical-grade monitoring capabilities are just now becoming widely available not only in developed countries but also in the most resource-constrained areas of the globe. A specific example is in skin-like-sometimes referred to as 'epidermal'-wireless electronics for continuous monitoring of essential markers of physiological health status, with accuracy and reliability comparable to that of expensive, wired-based systems currently used with patients in intensive care units, but cost-effectively and applicable in any setting-in hospitals, health clinics, work environments or in the home. These technologies have the potential to revolutionize diagnostic and therapeutic approaches for the care of patients. NSR spoke to one of the scientific leaders in this field-a 2009 MacArthur Fellow, the winner of the 2022 US National Academy of Sciences James Prize in Science and Technology Integration and one of the few individuals in history to be elected to all three US National Academies, namely the National Academy of Engineering, the National Academy of Science and the National Academy of Medicine, Professor John A. Rogers, the Director of the Querrey-Simpson Institute of Bioelectronics at Northwestern University on the recent advancements and the prospects of soft, biocompatible electronic systems and skin-like wearable devices.