Femtosecond laser direct writing Bombyx mori sericin-based nanocomposites into intrinsically soft wearable micro-/nano-electronics

Nanoscale. 2024 Dec 5;16(47):21869-21880. doi: 10.1039/d4nr02442g.

Abstract

Intrinsically flexible micro-/nano-electronics are increasingly in demand for wearable/implantable bio-machine interfacing optical electronics and soft robots. In this work, we developed intrinsically flexible and soft wearable micro-/nano-electronics by femtosecond laser direct writing Bombyx mori sericin-based nanocomposites. Sericin was used as the biomacromolecular reductant to photo-reduce metal ions into nanoparticles and the molecular matrix for in situ nano-compositing. The two/three-dimensional fabrication realized ∼350 nm minimum line width, customizable Young's modulus (∼0.22-3.35 GPa in air), and nano-scale morphology (∼12.1 nm average roughness). The electrical percolation and adjustable conductivity up to 105 S m-1 were studied. Within the sericin/Ag-nanocomposite percolation-threshold range, a miniaturized electro-mechano-sensor was prototyped with gauge factors (GF ∼ 16.95) and linearity (R2 ∼ 0.996), short response/recovery time (200 ms/120 ms), low detection limit (∼0.06% deformation) and power consumption (<0.1 mW), and remarkable intrinsic flexible performances (e.g., ∼104 time outward bendings). Cell/skin biocompatibilities and detections of human muscle/joint movements and sounds were demonstrated, promising its practical potential towards in vivo or in vitro bio-integrated electronics.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Bombyx* / chemistry
  • Elastic Modulus
  • Electric Conductivity
  • Electronics
  • Humans
  • Lasers*
  • Nanocomposites* / chemistry
  • Sericins* / chemistry
  • Silver / chemistry
  • Wearable Electronic Devices*

Substances

  • Sericins
  • Silver