Flexible Polymer Transducers for Dynamic Recognizing Physiological Signals

Ferroelectric polymers are of interest as most promising electroactive materials. Flexible transducers from ferroelectric polymer thin film with underneath semiconducting polymer active layer for high sensitive and versatile detection of physiological signals are described. When attached directly on the wrist, the flexible transducers can distinguish the transient pulse waves non-invasively and in situ, due to their fast response (milliseconds) and high sensitivity (down to several Pascal) to instantaneous change of blood pressure. High-resolution picture of one pulse wave is available to provide two most common parameters for arterial stiffness diagnosis. The transducers are also suitable for dynamic recognizing physiological signals under both physical exercise and medicine treatment, demonstrating their enormous potential for warning the risk of cardiovascular disease, and evaluating the efficacy of heart medicines. The transducers are easy to carry around with an operating voltage of 1 V and the power consumption less than 1 mu W. Thus, they are valuable for applications like electronic skin and mobile health monitoring.