We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience. This includes personalizing content and advertising. To learn more, click here. By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies. Cookie Policy.

Features Partner Sites Information LinkXpress hp
Sign In
Advertise with Us
LGC Clinical Diagnostics

Download Mobile App




Revolutionary Transistor Could Allow Wearable Devices to Measure Sodium and Potassium in Blood

By LabMedica International staff writers
Posted on 23 Jan 2023

Researchers have developed a revolutionary transistor that could be suitable for lightweight, flexible, high-performance bioelectronics. More...

The electrochemical transistor is compatible with blood and water and can amplify important signals, paving the way for its application in biomedical sensing. The transistor could allow for the use of wearable devices for onsite signal processing, right at the biology-device interface. Some of its likely applications could be for measuring heartbeat and the levels of sodium and potassium in blood, as well as eye motion in studies of sleep disorders.

The vertical electrochemical transistor developed by a transdisciplinary research team at Northwestern University (Evanston, IL, USA) is based on a new kind of electronic polymer and a vertical, instead of planar, architecture. The transistor conducts electricity as well as ions, and is stable in air. The design and synthesis of the new materials, and the fabrication and characterization of the transistor was made possible by the collaborative expertise of chemists, materials scientists and biomedical engineers in the research team.

In order to make electronic circuits more reliable and powerful, there is a need for two types of transistors: p-type transistors that carry positive charges and n-type transistors that carry negative charges. These types of circuits are called complementary circuits. In the past, researchers have faced a challenge in building n-type transistors which are also typically unstable. The work by the transdisciplinary research team is the first to demonstrate electrochemical transistors with similar and very high performance for both types (p+n) of electrochemical transistors. This helped the researchers fabricate highly efficient electrochemical complementary circuits.

“All modern electronics use transistors, which rapidly turn current on and off,” said Tobin J. Marks, a co-corresponding author of the study. “Here we use chemistry to enhance the switching. Our electrochemical transistor takes performance to a totally new level. You have all the properties of a conventional transistor but far higher transconductance (a measure of the amplification it can deliver), ultra-stable cycling of the switching properties, a small footprint that can enable high density integration, and easy, low-cost fabrication.”

“This exciting new type of transistor allows us to speak the language of both biological systems, which often communicate via ionic signaling, and electronic systems, which communicate with electrons,” said Jonathan Rivnay, professor of biomedical engineering at the McCormick School. “The ability of the transistors to work very efficiently as ‘mixed conductors’ makes them attractive for bioelectronic diagnostics and therapies.”

Related Links:
Northwestern University 


Gold Member
Veterinary Hematology Analyzer
Exigo H400
Serological Pipet Controller
PIPETBOY GENIUS
New
Rapid Test Reader
DIA5000
New
Silver Member
Autoimmune Hepatitis Test
LKM-1-Ab ELISA
Read the full article by registering today, it's FREE! It's Free!
Register now for FREE to LabMedica.com and get access to news and events that shape the world of Clinical Laboratory Medicine.
  • Free digital version edition of LabMedica International sent by email on regular basis
  • Free print version of LabMedica International magazine (available only outside USA and Canada).
  • Free and unlimited access to back issues of LabMedica International in digital format
  • Free LabMedica International Newsletter sent every week containing the latest news
  • Free breaking news sent via email
  • Free access to Events Calendar
  • Free access to LinkXpress new product services
  • REGISTRATION IS FREE AND EASY!
Click here to Register








Channels

Hematology

view channel
Image: CitoCBC is the world first cartridge-based CBC to be granted CLIA Waived status by FDA (Photo courtesy of CytoChip)

Disposable Cartridge-Based Test Delivers Rapid and Accurate CBC Results

Complete Blood Count (CBC) is one of the most commonly ordered lab tests, crucial for diagnosing diseases, monitoring therapies, and conducting routine health screenings. However, more than 90% of physician... Read more

Immunology

view channel
Image: A simple blood test could replace surgical biopsies for early detecion of heart transplant rejection (Photo courtesy of Shutterstock)

Blood Test Detects Organ Rejection in Heart Transplant Patients

Following a heart transplant, patients are required to undergo surgical biopsies so that physicians can assess the possibility of organ rejection. Rejection happens when the recipient’s immune system identifies... Read more

Pathology

view channel
These images illustrate how precision oncology Organ Chips recapitulate individual patients’ responses to chemotherapy (Photo courtesy of Wyss Institute at Harvard University)

Cancer Chip Accurately Predicts Patient-Specific Chemotherapy Response

Esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC), one of the two primary types of esophageal cancer, ranks as the sixth leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide and currently lacks effective targeted therapies.... Read more
Copyright © 2000-2025 Globetech Media. All rights reserved.