Cholinuim-based iongels for bioelectronic applications

LUQUE, GISELA C.; AGUZIN, ANA; DEL AGUA, ISABEL; MECERREYES, DAVID; MINARI, ROQUE J.

Congreso; GEP-SLAP 2022 (XVI Reunión del Grupo Especializado de Polímeros ? GEP 2022 y XVII Simposio Latinoamericano de Polímeros - SLAP 2022); 2022

Nowadays, bioelectronics area is looking for new soft-ionic systems to improve the performance in recording signals across this interface between biology and electronics. In this scenario, iongels (IGs) are excellent candidates due to their ionic conductivity, self-healing, thermo-responsiveness, or biocompatibility. Unlike hydrogels, IGs have the capability to maintain the ionic conductivity practically unaltered over time, allowing an excellent performance for the signal recordings. In this work, we report the preparation of iongels formed with a polymer matrix (poly(vinyl) alcohol (PVA) or gelatin), a phenolics compound (PhCs) as crosslinker, and a cholinium based ionic liquid (ILs). The mechanical, thermal, and rheological properties, ionic conductivity, and stability of the iongels were investigated. In terms of applications, the iongels were tested in different body sensor devices such as electrocardiogram (ECG), electromyography (EMG) recording over time, and as pressure sensor layers to detect human motion.