Suitable Nanomaterials for Retinal Implant Technique and Future Trends

Abstract

Artificial vision for blind patients suffering from retinal diseases has shown promising results in the last two decades, especially after the advancement in CMOS technology. In the modern era, two types of retinal implant techniques are very popular, one is the epiretinal implant and the other is the subretinal implant technique. Even though the method of data processing is different in the above-mentioned techniques, utilization of appropriate nanomaterial for the durability of the implant has always been a major concern. Materials such as titanium nitride (TiN), iridium oxide (IrOx), platinum grey, and carbon nanotube (CNT) were employed in recent years in many retinal prosthetic projects. Manufacturing of stimulating electrodes and coating of electronic devices to avoid infiltrations are the two important applications where nanomaterials are utilized in the retinal implant system. This chapter discusses the important and desired physical properties of nanomaterials viz. conductivity, tensile strength, absorption of photons, and adsorption of water molecules for the subretinal implant technique. Since the implant is located inside the retina, the isolated and corrosive environment is the main challenge. This study is based on the first-principles of density functional theory (DFT). Considering the recent advancements, the materials are comparatively analyzed, and new nanomaterial is also suggested.