ASP-DAC 2017 keynote speech I-2: Electronics for the human body

Biology is soft, curvilinear and transient; modern semiconductor technologies are rigid, planar and everlasting. Electronic and optoelectronic systems that eliminate this profound mismatch in properties create opportunities for devices that can intimately integrate with the body, for diagnostic, therapeutic or surgical function with important, unique capabilities in biomedical research and clinical healthcare. Over the last decade, a convergence of new concepts in mechanical engineering, materials science, electrical engineering and advanced manufacturing has led to the emergence of diverse, novel classes of ‘biocompatible' electronic platforms. This talk describes the key ideas, with examples ranging from wireless, skin-like electronic ‘tattoos' for continuous monitoring of physiological health, to multiplexed, conformal sensor sheets for mapping cardiac electrophysiology, to bioresorbable intracranial sensors for treating traumatic brain injury.