Thin-film Schottky Diodes on Softening Polymer Substrates for Radio-frequency Bioelectronics

The next generation of implantable electronics for biomedical medicines must include features which minimize the impact of the chronic inflammatory response to improve operational lifetime and minimize discomfort in the body. For this reason, eliminating the mechanical mismatch and effects that wires have on biological tissue could improve the state of present-day implantable electronics. Wireless devices could serve longer lifetimes and reduce the likeliness of complications that often arise in tethered electronics post-implantation. Moreover, by employing flexible substrates for wireless bioelectronics, the inflammatory response could be further mitigated and conformability to biological tissue enhanced. Yet, the design and fabrication of wireless electronic components on flexible substrates is limited, and flexibility of the devices is often sacrificed in exchange for the performance of rigid, silicon-based devices. Schottky diodes are rectifying electronic components crucial in the development of implantable wireless technology for biomedical medicines. In this work, we developed Schottky diodes on novel stimuli-responsive flexible substrates. By incorporating Schottky diode technology on novel flexible substrates that soften in response to temperature and moisture, the tradeoffs of flexibility, conformability, and performance are explored on electronic components for wireless technology. This work could pave the way for the next generation of soft, flexible electronics for biomedical applications.