Wearable continuous diffusion-based skin gas analysis

Abstract

Biophysical signals such as motion and optically acquired hemodynamics represent foundational sensing modalities for wearables. Expansion of this toolset is vital for the progression of digital medicine. Current efforts utilize biofluids such as sweat and interstitial fluid with primarily adhesively mounted sensors that are fundamentally limited by epidermal turnover. A class of potential biomarkers that is largely unexplored are gaseous emissions from the body. In this work, we introduce an approach to capture emission of gas from the skin with a leaky cavity designed to allow for diffusion-based ambient gas exchange with the environment. This approach, coupled with differential measurement of ambient and in-cavity gas concentrations, allows for the real-time analysis of sweat rate, VOCs, and CO2 while performing everyday tasks. The resulting biosignals are recorded with temporal resolutions that exceed current methodology, providing unparalleled insight into physiological processes without requiring sensor replacement over weeks at a time.