Inkjet-Printed In-Vitro Organic Electronic Devices

Abstract

In-vitro electronic devices are promising to dynamically monitor minute-changes in biological systems. Electronic devices based on conducting polymers such as poly(3,4- ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS) provide suitable and attractive substrates for biointerfacing. The soft polymer surface acts as a cushion for the living systems to interface while electronically detecting their properties. However, to this date, most bioelectronics devices have been fabricated via multi-step lithography techniques, which do not allow for mass fabrication and hence high throughput biosensing. Inkjet printing presents an alternative to fabricate organic bioelectronic devices. Besides being low-cost, inkjet printing allows to fabricate several devices in a short time with flexible design patterns and minimal material waste. Here, using inkjet printing, we fabricated PEDOT:PSS based organic electrochemical transistors (OECTs) for biomembrane interfacing. We optimized the deposition of various inks (silver nanoparticles (AgNPs), PEDOT:PSS, and the dielectric SU-8) used during the fabrication of these devices. We characterized the electrical characteristics of all-printed OECTs with various geometries and identified the high-performing ones. Due to the flexibility of ink optimization and design patterns, these all inkjet-printed electronic devices provide an alternative for mass production of biointerfacing platforms.

Date of Award	Sep 2021
Original language	English (US)
Awarding Institution	Biological, Environmental Sciences and Engineering
Supervisor	Sahika Inal (Supervisor)