Soft conductive nanocomposites for recording biosignals on skin

Abstract

Soft conductive nanocomposites have introduced significant breakthroughs in bio-integrated electronics by mitigating the mechanical mismatch between the body and the device. Compared with conventional wearable sensors based on rigid electronic materials, the wearable sensors based on soft nanocomposites are advantageous to long-term and high-quality biosignal recordings. Materials used for the synthesis of the nanocomposites, especially nanofillers, are critical for determining the quality of recorded biosignals and the performance of the nanocomposites. In this review, we focus on recent advances in soft conductive nanocomposites, mainly on their electrical and mechanical properties according to the types of nanofillers, and present their applications to wearable biosignal recording devices. We have classified the nanofillers into four categories: carbon-based nanomaterials, conducting polymers, metal-based nanomaterials, and liquid metals. We then introduce the applications of nanocomposites as wearable sensors that record various biosignals, including electrophysiological, strain, pressure, and biochemical information. In conclusion, a brief outlook on the remaining challenges for future nanomaterial-based bioelectronics is provided.