Photochromic Intradermal Smart Tattoo Based on Diarylethene-Doped Polystyrene Nanoparticles for Personal γ-Ray Dosimetry

Abstract

Personal dosimeters are critical tools to ensure environmental and occupational health and safety. Inherent to all wearable dosimeters is a compliance risk because they can be removed from a person accidentally or intentionally (and thus be misplaced, forgotten, or tampered with) or can cause discomfort. Intradermal smart tattoos are nanoscale implants that overcome these limitations because they can be permanent and comfortable within the skin. Here, we demonstrate a proof of concept for reversible intradermal colorimetric γ-ray dosimeters comprising polystyrene nanoparticles doped with photoresponsive dithienylethenes. We speculate that smart tattoos sensing dangerous radiation may improve convenience and compliance in personal dosimetry applications.

Molecular Nanotechnology for Tomorrow’s World: A Forum Dedicated to Professor Sir Fraser Stoddart on the Occasion of His 80th Birthday

“…31 Bruns and coworkers prepared diarylethene-doped polystyrene nanoparticles as photochromic intradermal tattoos for applications in personal γ-ray dosimetry. 32 Wang et al comprehensively reviewed recent developments of nanoporous covalent organic frameworks for bioimaging, drug delivery, phototherapy, and antibacterial applications. 33 Zhao and co-workers highlighted the recent advances of artificial nanosystems for the activation of immunity to treat bacteria-induced infectious diseases.…”

“…Bulut and Yilmaz reported quercetagetin-integrated silver nanoparticles for morin oxidation, affording dose-dependent cytotoxicity to selected cell lines . Bruns and co-workers prepared diarylethene-doped polystyrene nanoparticles as photochromic intradermal tattoos for applications in personal γ-ray dosimetry . Wang et al comprehensively reviewed recent developments of nanoporous covalent organic frameworks for bioimaging, drug delivery, phototherapy, and antibacterial applications .…”

What’s in My Ink: An Analysis of Commercial Tattoo Ink on the US Market

“…In the present day, tattoos are increasingly common as a form of self-expression, with more than 20% of the United States population having at least one tattoo . Beyond cosmetic purposes, interest in functional tattoos for medical diagnostics, electronics, and sensor applications is also growing at a remarkable pace. − …”

New insights into the photocyclization reaction of a popular diarylethene switch: a nonadiabatic molecular dynamics study

“…The photoswitching cycle of these systems is particularly highly biased: a trait exhibited to a certain extent by all DAE systems, meaning that the quantum yield of the photocyclization process is much higher than that of photocycloreversion. This property, along with outstanding fatigue resistance, 25 and a two-photon amplification of the cycloreversion quantum yield 23,24 allowed PT and DMPT to make their way into many technological applications, [26][27][28] as well as made them the object of numerous fundamental studies. 14,23,29 Owing to its popularity, a rich set of dedicated experimental studies deliver high-quality data describing PT photochemistry and photophysics.…”