State Key Laboratory for Modification of Chemical Fibers and Polymer Materials, College of Materials Science and Engineering, Donghua University, 201620, Shanghai, China.
Department of Hand Surgery, Center for the Reconstruction of Limb Function, National Clinical Research Center for Aging and Medicine, Huashan Hospital; Department of Hand and Upper Extremity Surgery, Jing'an District Central Hospital; NHC Key Laboratory of Hand Reconstruction, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Peripheral Nerve and Microsurgery, Institute of Hand Surgery, Fudan University, 200040, Shanghai, China.
Nat Commun. 2023 Apr 24;14(1):2355. doi: 10.1038/s41467-023-37884-0.
The emergence of ionic-junction devices has attracted growing interests due to the potential of serving as signal transmission and translation media between electronic devices and biological systems using ions. Among them, fiber-shaped iontronics possesses a great advantage in implantable applications owing to the unique one-dimensional geometry. However, fabricating stable ionic-junction on curved surfaces remains a challenge. Here, we developed a polyelectrolyte based ionic-junction fiber via an integrated opposite charge grafting method capable of large-scale continuous fabrication. The ionic-junction fibers can be integrated into functions such as ionic diodes and ionic bipolar junction transistors, where rectification and switching of input signals are implemented. Moreover, synaptic functionality has also been demonstrated by utilizing the fiber memory capacitance. The connection between the ionic-junction fiber and sciatic nerves of the mouse simulating end-to-side anastomosis is further performed to realize effective nerve signal conduction, verifying the capability for next-generation artificial neural pathways in implantable bioelectronics.
离子结器件的出现引起了人们越来越多的兴趣，因为它们有可能成为电子设备和生物系统之间信号传输和转换的媒介，利用离子来实现这一功能。其中，纤维状离子电子学由于其独特的一维几何形状，在可植入应用中具有很大的优势。然而，在曲面上制造稳定的离子结仍然是一个挑战。在这里，我们通过一种集成的相反电荷接枝方法开发了一种基于聚电解质的离子结纤维，这种方法能够大规模连续制造。离子结纤维可以集成到离子二极管和离子双极结晶体管等功能中，实现输入信号的整流和开关。此外，还利用纤维记忆电容来证明其具有突触功能。进一步将离子结纤维与模拟端侧吻合的小鼠坐骨神经连接，实现有效的神经信号传导，验证了其在可植入生物电子学中作为下一代人工神经通路的能力。
