Study of Physically Transient Insulating Materials as a Potential Platform for Transient Electronics and Bioelectronics

wileyonlinelibrary.com signifi cantly to advances in the new fi eld of transient electronics. [ 2 ] Research on organic bioelectronics based on silicon nano-membranes, [ 3 ] and peptide templates, [ 4 ] with emphasis on devicetissue interface, has gained tremendous momentum in the last decade. Unlike some biomedical devices such as pacemakers and artifi cial joints that are designed to last for an extended duration of time, degradable bioelectronic and biomedical devices are designed to undergo degradation after a relatively short period of time. Degradation duration varies, depending on the application. For instance, resorbable sutures should retain their mechanical properties for at least several days whereas targeted-drugdelivery vehicles are usually designed to instantaneously breakdown when exposed to the stimuli. It is of signifi cant importance to design and fabricate degradable materials with tunable degradation, which can undergo quick and complete degradation when triggered. The term “transient materials” has been used to describe this class of programmable degradable materials. Developing transient materials and devices holds tremendous value in biomedical, military and intelligence applications. For example, in one study transient materials have been used to provide thermal therapy to control surgical site infection as nano-antibiotic. [ 5 ] Many brain damages and abnormal brain activities can be detected and monitored by study of electric signal at the surface of the brain. [ 6,7 ] In one example, Kim et al. have demonstrated monitor of brain activities in a cat using dissolvable fl exible electronics consisting of arrays of micro-fabricated electrodes. [ 7 ] In this open-skull procedure, electric signals were detected at the surface of brain and transmitted to a monitoring device where data was recorded and analyzed. This procedure could be performed as a closed-skull if the needs for monitor and removal of electrodes were eliminated by use of transient materials. Transient electronics can be used in this, or similar, cases where additional surgeries are required to remove biomedical devices from the body. [ 8 ] Flexible electronics are desirable for this type of studies, because they better conform to the 3-dimensionally curved structure of the organ. One important factor in design of bioelectronics is their interface Study of Physically Transient Insulating Materials as a Potential Platform for Transient Electronics and Bioelectronics