materiaux

The rapid development of ultra-thin electronic skins (e-skins) – also called epidermal electronics or electronic tattoos – is opening new realms of possibility for flexible and stretchable monitoring gadgets that are wearable directly on the skin. These e-skin devices can be used for, among other things, prosthetics and rehabilitation, optogenetics, human-machine interfaces, human-computer interaction in gaming, and as diagnostic tools in the medical field (read more on this topic in « Lab-on-skin: Nanotechnology electronics for wearable health monitoring »).

The bar was undoubtedly set high: In the research project Functional Oxides Printed on Polymers and Paper – FOXIP for short – the goal was to succeed in printing thin-film transistors on paper substrates or PET films. Electronic circuits with such elements play an important role in the growing Internet of Things (IoT), for example as sensors on documents, bottles, packaging … – a global market worth billions.