Skin Conformal Polymer Electrodes for Clinical ECG and EEG Recordings

Abstract

Preparation-free and skin compliant biopotential electrodes with high recording quality enable wearables for future healthcare and the Internet of Humans. Here, super-soft and self-adhesive electrodes are presented for use on dry and hairy skin without skin preparation or attachment pressure. The electrodes show a skin-contact impedance of 50 kΩ cm² at 10 Hz that is comparable to clinical standard gel electrodes and lower than existing dry electrodes. Microstructured electrodes inspired by grasshopper feet adhere repeatedly to the skin with a force of up to 0.1 N cm⁻² without further attachment even during strong movement or deformation of the skin. Skin compliance and adhesive properties of the electrodes result in reduction of noise and motion artifacts superior to other dry electrodes reaching the performance of commercial gel electrodes. The signal quality is demonstrated by recording a high-fidelity electrocardiograms of a swimmer in water. Furthermore, an electrode with soft macropillars is used to detect alpha activity in the electroencephalograms from the back of the head through dense hair. Compared to gel electrodes, the soft biopotential electrodes are nearly imperceptible to the wearer and cause no skin irritations even after hours of application. The electrodes presented here could combine unobtrusive and long-term biopotential recordings with clinical-grade signal performance.

This work presents soft and self-adhesive biopotential electrodes for use on dry and hairy skin without skin preparation. With 50 kΩ cm², the impedance is comparable to clinical-standard gel electrodes. Microstructured electrodes adhere to the skin during strong movement or deformation, macrostructured pillars establish contact through dense hair. High-fidelity recordings of electrocardiograms during swimming and of electroencephalograms from the backhead are demonstrated.

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