Conductive, ecoresorbable inks for water-soluble electronic devices

Transient electronics technology is an emerging field that requires materials and devices to be capable of degrading with minimal or non-traceable remains over a period. Electronics able to degrade naturally without hazardous waste streams, biomedical implants that could dissolve in biofluids and eco-resorbable antennas are not science fiction but rather a science fact. Although this concept has only a few years of development, this emerging technology has already gained researchers attention.

One area of growing interest is in conductive materials that could be printed at sufficient thickness to enable three-dimensional interconnects and additional features for circuit boards. So far, composites of hydrophilic polymers that could yield water-soluble, printable conductors have been reported, however, the main disadvantages are the rapid degradation upon immersing in water and their cytotoxicity. Recently, an interdisciplinary research group from Northwestern University, USA, engineered a transient conductive paste which is biocompatible and proves to offer stable operation over extended periods of immersion in aqueous environments [Rogers et al., Materials Today(2018), doi: 10.1016/j.mattod.2017.12.005].