A group of scientists from California have developed a series of organic electronic components that will harmlessly dissolve into their environment after use.
Led by Stanford Professor of Chemical Engineering Zhenan Bao, the team’s inventions include a biodegradable semi-conductive polymer, disintegrable and flexible electronic circuits, and a biodegradable substrate material for mounting these electrical components onto.
Totally flexible and biocompatible, the ultra-thin film substrate allows the components to be mounted onto both rough and smooth surfaces.
All together, the components can be used to create biocompatible, ultra-thin, lightweight and low-cost electronics for applications as diverse as wearable electronics to large-scale environmental surveys.
Crucially, when the electronic device is no longer useful, it will biodegrade into non toxic components that are harmless to the human body and environment.
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