A graphene health sensor that goes on the skin like a temporary tattoo takes measurements with the same precision as bulky medical equipment. The graphene tattoos, presented in December at the International Electron Devices Meeting in San Francisco, are the thinnest epidermal electronics ever made. They can measure electrical signals from the heart, muscles, and brain, as well as skin temperature and hydration.
Researchers at the University of Texas at Austin who are developing the sensors hope to develop them for consumer cosmetic use. They also hope the ultrathin sensors will provide a more comfortable replacement for existing medical equipment.
Today, if your doctor wants to monitor your heart rate over an extended period of time to help diagnose some cardiac irregularity, you’ll be sent home with a bulky EKG monitoring harness to wear for 24 hours. The Texas researchers hope to make a system that can take measurements of the same quality or better, but that’s unobtrusive. Deji Akinwande, an electrical engineer who specializes in 2D materials, is collaborating on the project with Nanshu Lu, who works on epidermal electronics.
Materials scientists have for years sung the praises of graphene’s electrical properties and mechanical toughness. What’s been underappreciated, says Akinwande, is that this single-atom-thick stuff is mechanically invisible. When it goes on the skin, it doesn’t just stay flat—it conforms to the microscale ridges and roughness of the epidermis. “You don’t feel it because it’s so compliant,” says Akinwande.
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