Sustainably Powered, Multifunctional Flexible Feedback Implant by the Bifacial Design and Si Photovoltaics

Abstract

Advanced design and integration of functioning devices with secured power is of interest for many applications that require complicated, sophisticated, or multifunctional processes in confined environments such as in human bodies. Here, strategies for design and realization are introduced for multifunctional feedback implants with the bifacial design and silicon (Si) photovoltaics in flexible forms. The approaches provide efficient design spaces for flexible Si photovoltaics facing up for sustainable powering and multiple electronic components for feedback functions facing down for sensing, processing, and stimulating in human bodies. The computational and experimental results including in vivo assessments ensure feasibility of the approaches by demonstrating feedback multifunctions, power‐harvesting in milliwatts, and mechanical compatibility for operations in live tissues. This work should useful for wide range of applications that require sustainable power and advanced multifunctions.

Biomimetic Exogenous “Tissue Batteries” as Artificial Power Sources for Implantable Bioelectronic Devices Manufacturing

“…The flexible double‐sided feedback implant is well‐suited for powering smaller medical devices that require sustainable power, such as cardiac pacemakers (requiring ≈100 µW), cardiac defibrillators (requiring ≈500 µW), and drug pumps (requiring ≈1 mW). [ 482 ] Increasing the energy transfer power is an important topic, and one strategy is to prepare flexible PV arrays. By integrating Si PV, NIR receivers, and LEDs on a flexible PI film with metal traces, a flexible wireless optogenetic system for light driving and light control was realized.…”

“…Adapted with permission. [ 482 ] Copyright 2021, Wiley‐VCH. D) Flexible and inorganic materials for PVs.…”

Wireless interfaces for brain neurotechnologies

“…The design of the external wireless interface can also take advantage of flexible and stretchable materials and design to improve comfort when worn during daily activities [206]. Flexible optical wireless interfaces can be realized using flexible photovoltaic films as optical detectors and energy harvesters [65,151,152]. In addition, flexible ultrasonic interfaces have been demonstrated using arrays of piezoelectric crystal with stretchable interconnects [145].…”

Ultrathin GaAs Photovoltaic Arrays Integrated on a 1.4 µm Polymer Substrate for High Flexibility, a Lightweight Design, and High Specific Power

“…[9][10][11] More interestingly, ultrathin solar cells usually have ultra-flexible and lightweight characteristics, enabling them to adhere to diverse surfaces conformally. [8,12] These characteristics should be beneficial as an independent power source for deformable, lightweight or ultrathin future electronics such as artificial skin, [13][14][15] electronic textiles, [16][17][18] implantable electronics, [19][20][21] and miniaturized robots. [22] Ultrathin form factors can be achieved with various materials that demonstrate intrinsic flexibility.…”