Flexible electronic devices for neural stimulation

School of Life Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, Shanghai, China

^* Corresponding author: chensy4@shanghaitech.edu.cn

Abstract

Flexible electric devices (FEDs) function as invasive neural stimulation. FEDs contribute much in the biomedical field, potentiating many applications, including insight discovery of sensory processing and treatment for Parkinson’s disease (PD) and depression. FEDs also facilitate deep brain stimulation (DBS), a method to deliver signals to specific targets in the brain, usually parts in the deep brain, including the brain nucleus, via implanted electrodes and spinal cord stimulation, typically for treating chronic pain. Besides biomedical applications, FEDs also have potential in the brain-machine interface (BMI) due to their ability to conform to neural structures, enabling precise and comfortable interfacing for enhanced control and communication between the brain and external technologies. In the review, the importance of selecting material for FEDs is illustrated at first. Then, several literatures are reviewed, demonstrating their contribution and significance in the field. Some applications of FEDs, namely, pain management and BMI, are also discussed. This review is valuable for researching FEDs for various aspects of neural stimulation by proposing recent works on manifold domains of FEDs and discussing their potential applications.