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Conformable, Thin, and Dry Electrode for Electrocardiography Using Composite of Silver Nanowires and Polyvinyl Butyral

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Abstract

Development of a thin and dry electrode for electrocardiography (ECG) is essential in order to prevent skin irritation, allergic reactions from electrolytic gel, and motion artifacts caused by relative motion between the electrodes and the skin. In this study, we have developed a composite electrode made from Ag nanowires (AgNWs) and polyvinyl butyral (PVB), prepared by inverted layer processing (ILP). The initial composite electrodes were mechanically stable, flexible, and transparent; however, most of the NWs were located beneath the surface of the PVB such that few conductive pathways were exposed and available to contact the skin. In order to resolve this issue, prior to transferring the AgNWs from the temporary glass substrate to the PVB, we irradiated the NWs with intensive pulsed light. This irradiation induced plasmonic heating of the AgNWs, which caused the NWs to sink towards the glass and form a dense layer on the temporary substrate. Subsequent ILP resulted in the fabrication of an AgNWs/PVB composite electrode that demonstrated significant surface coverage of conductive pathways available for stable electrical contact with skin. The resultant composite electrode is an improved ECG electrode that exhibits fewer motion artifacts compared to conventional Ag/AgCl-based wet electrodes since it is both dry and conformable.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by a National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) Grant (Numbers 2015R1A4A1042417, 2018R1D1A1B07047386 and 2016M3A7B4910) funded by the Korean government (MSIP).

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Author notes

  1. Su Bin Choi and Min Suk Oh contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Advanced Materials Engineering, Chonbuk National University, 567 Baekje-daero, Deokjin-gu, Jeonju, 54896, Republic of Korea

    Su Bin Choi, Cheul-Ro Lee & Jong-Woong Kim

  2. Display Materials and Components Research Center, Korea Electronics Technology Institute, 68 Yatap-dong, Bundang-gu, Seongnam, 463-816, Republic of Korea

    Min Suk Oh & Chul Jong Han

  3. School of Flexible and Printable Electronics, Chonbuk National University, 567 Baekje-daero, Deokjin-gu, Jeonju, 54896, Republic of Korea

    Jae-Wook Kang

  4. Department of Biomedical Engineering, Wonkwang University College of Medicine, Iksan, 54538, Republic of Korea

    Jinseok Lee

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  1. Su Bin Choi
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Correspondence to Jinseok Lee or Jong-Woong Kim.

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Choi, S.B., Oh, M.S., Han, C.J. et al. Conformable, Thin, and Dry Electrode for Electrocardiography Using Composite of Silver Nanowires and Polyvinyl Butyral. Electron. Mater. Lett. 15, 267–277 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13391-019-00125-y

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