Flexible Batteries Could Be Used to Power Implants

The era of conformal electronics may be approaching. Two pioneers in the space of flexible electronics have announced the development of a stretchable lithium-ion battery. The battery is compatible with the stretchable electronics they helped develop earlier, which could be worn like temporary tattoos to monitor vital signs as well in a variety of medical device applications. Known as the "Biostamp," that technology is now being commercialized by MC10 (Cambridge, MA).

In Nature Communications, the two researchers, Northwestern University's Yonggang Huang and the University of Illinois' John A. Rogers, report that the batteries could be used to power electronics that monitor everything from brain waves to heart activity. In their studies, the battery worked for eight to nine hours before it was recharged--wirelessly.

As they explain in Nature Communications:

The battery's flexibility comes from thin wires that stretch between the battery's components. When stretched, the wires unwind like a ball of yarn. The battery can extend up to 300% of its original size. For a demonstration of the battery's stretching capacity, see the video above.

More information on the technology is available from Northwestern.