PEDOT:PSS-based intrinsically soft and stretchable bioelectronics

Abstract

Intrinsically soft and stretchable bioelectronics exhibit tissue-like mechanical behavior that enables the seamless integration of electronic devices with the human body to achieve high-quality biosignal recording and high-efficacy neural modulation. The conducting polymer poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS) shows significant promise in this field because of its high conductivity, excellent biocompatibility and commercial availability. However, pristine PEDOT:PSS is brittle and rigid and thus cannot be used in soft and stretchable electronics. More effort is therefore required to engineer PEDOT:PSS into a stretchable conductor that meets the demands of bioelectronics. In this perspective, we review the recent progress and propose the possible future directions of PEDOT:PSS-based bioelectronics.