Implantable Microdevices

A special issue of Micromachines (ISSN 2072-666X). This special issue belongs to the section "B:Biology and Biomedicine".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (10 November 2018) | Viewed by 59250

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Special Issue Editors

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, College of Engineering, Michigan State University, 428 S. Shaw Lane, East Lansing, MI, USA
Interests: MEMS; microfluidics; biomimetic devices; implantable devices; sensors; integration and ackaging technologies
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Engineering, Michigan State University, 775 Woodlot Drive, East Lansing, MI, USA
Interests: biomedical optics; MEMS/MOEMS; imaging; wearable and implantable medical devices
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Implantable microdevices, providing accurate measurement of target analytes in animals and humans, have always been important in biological science, medical diagnostics, clinical therapy, and personal healthcare. Recently, there have been increasing unmet needs for developing high-performance implants that are small, minimally-invasive, biocompatible, long-term stable, and cost-effective. Therefore, the aim of this Special Issue is to bring together state-of-the-art research and development contributions that address key challenges and topics related to implantable microdevices. Applications of primary interest include, but are not limited to, miniaturized optical sensing and imaging tools, implantable sensors for detecting biochemical species and/or metabolites, transducers for measuring biophysical quantities (e.g., pressure and/or strain), and neural prosthetic devices.

This Special Issue solicits review articles, original research papers, and short communication on bio-optical sensor and imager, sensing and actuating structures and transducers, modeling, biocompatible materials and interfaces, fabrication techniques, advanced packaging and coatings, biotelemetry, electronics and algorithms that are inclusive of implantable microdevices themselves. Algorithms and hardware constructions designed to support implantable microdevices but not themselves implanted will not be considered. Authors are invited to contact the Guest Editors prior to submission if they are uncertain whether their work falls within the general scope of this Special Issue

Dr. Wen Li
Dr. Zhen Qiu
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • Implants
  • Implantable sensors
  • Bio-optical sensor
  • Bio-optical imager
  • Transducers
  • Neural prosthetic devices
  • Biocompatible materials and interfaces

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Related Special Issue

Published Papers (10 papers)

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Editorial

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2 pages, 151 KiB  
Editorial
Editorial for the Special Issue on Implantable Microdevices
by Wen Li and Zhen Qiu
Micromachines 2019, 10(9), 603; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi10090603 - 12 Sep 2019
Viewed by 1926
Abstract
Implantable microdevices, providing accurate measurement of target analytes in animals and humans, have always been important in biological science, medical diagnostics, clinical therapy, and personal healthcare [...] Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Implantable Microdevices)

Research

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15 pages, 5498 KiB  
Article
Constructing a Dual-Function Surface by Microcasting and Nanospraying for Efficient Drag Reduction and Potential Antifouling Capabilities
by Liguo Qin, Mahshid Hafezi, Hao Yang, Guangneng Dong and Yali Zhang
Micromachines 2019, 10(7), 490; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi10070490 - 23 Jul 2019
Cited by 40 | Viewed by 4498
Abstract
To improve the drag-reducing and antifouling performance of marine equipment, it is indispensable to learn from structures and materials that are found in nature. This is due to their excellent properties, such as intelligence, microminiaturization, hierarchical assembly, and adaptability. Considerable interest has arisen [...] Read more.
To improve the drag-reducing and antifouling performance of marine equipment, it is indispensable to learn from structures and materials that are found in nature. This is due to their excellent properties, such as intelligence, microminiaturization, hierarchical assembly, and adaptability. Considerable interest has arisen in fabricating surfaces with various types of biomimetic structures, which exhibit promising and synergistic performances similar to living organisms. In this study, a dual bio-inspired shark-skin and lotus-structure (BSLS) surface was developed for fabrication on commercial polyurethane (PU) polymer. Firstly, the shark-skin pattern was transferred on the PU by microcasting. Secondly, hierarchical micro- and nanostructures were introduced by spraying mesoporous silica nanospheres (MSNs). The dual biomimetic substrates were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, water contact angle characterization, antifouling, self-cleaning, and water flow impacting experiments. The results revealed that the BSLS surface exhibited dual biomimetic features. The micro- and nano-lotus-like structures were localized on a replicated shark dermal denticle. A contact angle of 147° was observed on the dual-treated surface and the contact angle hysteresis was decreased by 20% compared with that of the nontreated surface. Fluid drag was determined with shear stress measurements and a drag reduction of 36.7% was found for the biomimetic surface. With continuous impacting of high-speed water for up to 10 h, the biomimetic surface stayed superhydrophobic. Material properties such as inhibition of protein adsorption, mechanical robustness, and self-cleaning performances were evaluated, and the data indicated these behaviors were significantly improved. The mechanisms of drag reduction and self-cleaning are discussed. Our results indicate that this method is a potential strategy for efficient drag reduction and antifouling capabilities. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Implantable Microdevices)
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9 pages, 2740 KiB  
Article
Fabrication and Characterization of Micro-Nano Electrodes for Implantable BCI
by Ye Xi, Bowen Ji, Zhejun Guo, Wen Li and Jingquan Liu
Micromachines 2019, 10(4), 242; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi10040242 - 11 Apr 2019
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 4086
Abstract
Signal recording and stimulation with high spatial and temporal resolution are of increasing interest with the development of implantable brain-computer interfaces (BCIs). However, implantable BCI technology still faces challenges in the biocompatibility and long-term stability of devices after implantation. Due to the cone [...] Read more.
Signal recording and stimulation with high spatial and temporal resolution are of increasing interest with the development of implantable brain-computer interfaces (BCIs). However, implantable BCI technology still faces challenges in the biocompatibility and long-term stability of devices after implantation. Due to the cone structure, needle electrodes have advantages in the biocompatibility and stability as nerve recording electrodes. This paper develops the fabrication of Ag needle micro/nano electrodes with a laser-assisted pulling method and modifies the electrode surface by electrochemical oxidation. A significant impedance reduction of the modified Ag/AgCl electrodes compared to the Ag electrodes is demonstrated by the electrochemical impedance spectrum (EIS). Furthermore, the stability of modified Ag/AgCl electrodes is confirmed by cyclic voltammogram (CV) scanning. These findings suggest that these micro/nano electrodes have a great application prospect in neural interfaces. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Implantable Microdevices)
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9 pages, 8019 KiB  
Article
Single-Sided Near-Field Wireless Power Transfer by A Three-Dimensional Coil Array
by Amirhossein Hajiaghajani and Seungyoung Ahn
Micromachines 2019, 10(3), 200; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi10030200 - 21 Mar 2019
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 4474
Abstract
Wirelessly powered medical microrobots are often driven or localized by magnetic resonance imaging coils, whose signal-to-noise ratio is easily affected by the power transmitter coils that supply the microrobot. A controlled single-sided wireless power transmitter can enhance the imaging quality and suppress the [...] Read more.
Wirelessly powered medical microrobots are often driven or localized by magnetic resonance imaging coils, whose signal-to-noise ratio is easily affected by the power transmitter coils that supply the microrobot. A controlled single-sided wireless power transmitter can enhance the imaging quality and suppress the radiation leakage. This paper presents a new form of electromagnet which automatically cancels the magnetic field to the back lobes by replacing the traditional circular coils with a three-dimensional (3D) coil scheme inspired by a generalized form of Halbach arrays. It is shown that, along with the miniaturization of the transmitter system, it allows for improved magnetic field intensity in the target side. Measurement of the produced magnetic patterns verifies that the power transfer to the back lobe is 15-fold smaller compared to the corresponding distance on the main lobe side, whilst maintaining a powering efficiency similar to that of conventional planar coils. To show the application of the proposed array, a wireless charging pad with an effective powering area of 144 cm2 is fabricated on 3D-assembled printed circuit boards. This 3D structure obviates the need for traditional magnetic shield materials that place limitations on the working frequency and suffer from non-linearity and hysteresis effects. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Implantable Microdevices)
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11 pages, 8786 KiB  
Article
A Miniaturized Circularly-Polarized Antenna for In-Body Wireless Communications
by Yi Fan, Xiongying Liu, Jiming Li and Tianhai Chang
Micromachines 2019, 10(1), 70; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi10010070 - 19 Jan 2019
Cited by 16 | Viewed by 5212
Abstract
A novel miniaturized single-fed circularly-polarized (CP) microstrip patch antenna operating in the Industrial, Scientific, Medical (ISM) band of 2.40–2.48 GHz, is comprehensively proposed for implantable wireless communications. By employing reactive loading in the arrow-shaped slotted patch to form slow wave effect and embedding [...] Read more.
A novel miniaturized single-fed circularly-polarized (CP) microstrip patch antenna operating in the Industrial, Scientific, Medical (ISM) band of 2.40–2.48 GHz, is comprehensively proposed for implantable wireless communications. By employing reactive loading in the arrow-shaped slotted patch to form slow wave effect and embedding V-shaped slots into patch to lengthen the current path, the proposed implantable antenna is minimized with the overall dimensions of 9.2 mm × 9.2 mm × 1.27 mm. The radiation patterns of the proposed antenna illustrate the performance of left-handed circular polarization. The simulated results show that an impedance bandwidth of 7.2% (2.39–2.57 GHz) and an axial ratio bandwidth of 3.7% (2.39–2.48 GHz) at the ISM band are achieved, respectively. Ex vivo measured results are in good agreement with the corresponding simulated ones. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Implantable Microdevices)
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7 pages, 2831 KiB  
Article
A Compact Broadband Antenna with Dual-Resonance for Implantable Devices
by Rongqiang Li, Bo Li, Guohong Du, Xiaofeng Sun and Haoran Sun
Micromachines 2019, 10(1), 59; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi10010059 - 16 Jan 2019
Cited by 36 | Viewed by 4311
Abstract
A compact broadband implantable patch antenna is designed for the field of biotelemetry and experimentally demonstrated using the Medical Device Radiocommunications Service (MedRadio) band (401–406 MHz). The proposed antenna can obtain a broad impedance bandwidth by exciting dual-resonant frequencies, and has a compact [...] Read more.
A compact broadband implantable patch antenna is designed for the field of biotelemetry and experimentally demonstrated using the Medical Device Radiocommunications Service (MedRadio) band (401–406 MHz). The proposed antenna can obtain a broad impedance bandwidth by exciting dual-resonant frequencies, and has a compact structure using bent metal radiating strips and a short strategy. The total volume of the proposed antenna, including substrate and superstrate, is about 479 mm3 (23 × 16.4 × 1.27 mm3). The measured bandwidth is 52 MHz (382–434 MHz) at a return loss of −10 dB. The resonance, radiation and specific absorption rate (SAR) performance of the antenna are examined and characterized. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Implantable Microdevices)
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16 pages, 34746 KiB  
Article
Numerical Study and Optimization of a Novel Piezoelectric Transducer for a Round-Window Stimulating Type Middle-Ear Implant
by Houguang Liu, Hehe Wang, Zhushi Rao, Jianhua Yang and Shanguo Yang
Micromachines 2019, 10(1), 40; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi10010040 - 9 Jan 2019
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 6996
Abstract
Round window (RW) stimulation is a new application of middle ear implants for treating hearing loss, especially for those with middle ear disease. However, most reports on it are based on the use of the floating mass transducer (FMT), which was not originally [...] Read more.
Round window (RW) stimulation is a new application of middle ear implants for treating hearing loss, especially for those with middle ear disease. However, most reports on it are based on the use of the floating mass transducer (FMT), which was not originally designed for round window stimulation. The mismatch of the FMT’s diameter and the round window membrane’s diameter and the uncontrollable preload of the transducer, leads to a high variability in its clinical outcomes. Accordingly, a new piezoelectric transducer for the round-window-stimulating-type middle ear implant is proposed in this paper. The transducer consists of a piezoelectric stack, a flextensional amplifier, a coupling rod, a salver, a plate, a titanium housing and a supporting spring. Based on a constructed coupling finite element model of the human ear and the transducer, the influences of the transducer design parameters on its performance were analyzed. The optimal structure of the supporting spring, which determines the transducer’s resonance frequency, was ascertained. The results demonstrate that our designed transducer generates better output than the FMT, especially at low frequency. Besides this, the power consumption of the transducer was significantly decreased compared with a recently reported RW-stimulating piezoelectric transducer. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Implantable Microdevices)
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15 pages, 16582 KiB  
Article
Development of ECG Monitoring System and Implantable Device with Wireless Charging
by Jae-Ho Lee and Dong-Wook Seo
Micromachines 2019, 10(1), 38; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi10010038 - 8 Jan 2019
Cited by 18 | Viewed by 7873
Abstract
We developed an implantable electrocardiogram (ECG) monitoring system and demonstrated its performance through an in vivo test. In the system, the implantable device senses not only the ECG signal of the animal but also the voltage level of the secondary cell and temperature [...] Read more.
We developed an implantable electrocardiogram (ECG) monitoring system and demonstrated its performance through an in vivo test. In the system, the implantable device senses not only the ECG signal of the animal but also the voltage level of the secondary cell and temperature inside the implantable device, and users can check the transmitted information through a PC program or a mobile application. The adoption of wireless charging technology eliminates the use of a lead wire and repetitive surgery to replace the implantable device. The proposed wireless charging technology demonstrated experimentally a wireless power transfer efficiency of approximately 30%. To minimize the size of the implantable device, the antenna and coil were integrated into a size of 34 mm × 14 mm. Communication between the implantable device and the basestation can reach up to 2.4 m when the implantable device is inserted into a porcine skin sample. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Implantable Microdevices)
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15 pages, 7203 KiB  
Article
Tongue Pressure Sensing Array Integrated with a System-on-Chip Embedded in a Mandibular Advancement Splint
by Yun-Ting Chen, Kun-Ying Yeh, Szu-Han Chen, Chuang-Yin Wang, Chao-Chi Yeh, Ming-Xin Xu, Shey-Shi Lu, Yunn-Jy Chen and Yao-Joe Yang
Micromachines 2018, 9(7), 352; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi9070352 - 14 Jul 2018
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 8472
Abstract
Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), which is caused by obstructions of the upper airway, is a syndrome with rising prevalence. Mandibular advancement splints (MAS) are oral appliances for potential treatment of OSA. This work proposes a highly-sensitive pressure sensing array integrated with a system-on-chip [...] Read more.
Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), which is caused by obstructions of the upper airway, is a syndrome with rising prevalence. Mandibular advancement splints (MAS) are oral appliances for potential treatment of OSA. This work proposes a highly-sensitive pressure sensing array integrated with a system-on-chip (SoC) embedded in a MAS. The device aims to measure tongue pressure distribution in order to determine the efficacy of the MAS for treating OSA. The flexible sensing array consists of an interdigital electrode pair array assembled with conductive polymer films and an SoC capable of retrieving/storing data during sleep, and transmitting data for analysis after sleep monitoring. The surfaces of the conductive polymer films were patterned with microdomed structures, which effectively increased the sensitivity and reduced the pressure sensing response time. The measured results also show that the crosstalk effect between the sensing elements of the array was negligible. The sensitivity of the sensing array changed minimally after the device was submerged in water for up to 100 h. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Implantable Microdevices)
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Review

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22 pages, 7551 KiB  
Review
Micro/Nano Technologies for High-Density Retinal Implant
by Qi Zeng, Saisai Zhao, Hangao Yang, Yi Zhang and Tianzhun Wu
Micromachines 2019, 10(6), 419; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi10060419 - 22 Jun 2019
Cited by 23 | Viewed by 10232
Abstract
During the past decades, there have been leaps in the development of micro/nano retinal implant technologies, which is one of the emerging applications in neural interfaces to restore vision. However, higher feedthroughs within a limited space are needed for more complex electronic systems [...] Read more.
During the past decades, there have been leaps in the development of micro/nano retinal implant technologies, which is one of the emerging applications in neural interfaces to restore vision. However, higher feedthroughs within a limited space are needed for more complex electronic systems and precise neural modulations. Active implantable medical electronics are required to have good electrical and mechanical properties, such as being small, light, and biocompatible, and with low power consumption and minimal immunological reactions during long-term implantation. For this purpose, high-density implantable packaging and flexible microelectrode arrays (fMEAs) as well as high-performance coating materials for retinal stimulation are crucial to achieve high resolution. In this review, we mainly focus on the considerations of the high-feedthrough encapsulation of implantable biomedical components to prolong working life, and fMEAs for different implant sites to deliver electrical stimulation to targeted retinal neuron cells. In addition, the functional electrode materials to achieve superior stimulation efficiency are also reviewed. The existing challenge and future research directions of micro/nano technologies for retinal implant are briefly discussed at the end of the review. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Implantable Microdevices)
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