In technology’s quest to make things smaller, lighter, and more inconspicuous*, we’re now being introduced to flexible, wearable integrated circuits* that are applied directly to the skin, eliminating the need for any additional hardware.

    The brainchild of Zhenqiang “Jack” Ma, an engineering professor at UW-Madison, this new technology is almost like a temporary tattoo — only rather than satisfying an aesthetic purpose, these stretchable circuits can actually support frequencies in the .3 gigahertz-to-300 gigahertz range, allowing doctors and patients to monitor vital health signs completely wirelessly.

    The power of the new circuits, researchers say, can be traced to their unique structure. As Science News Journal explains, the integrated circuits contain “two ultra-tiny intertwining* power transmission lines that wrap in S-curves which are built together in a repeating pattern … Their serpentine shape gives the lines the ability to stretch without losing their performance value, while also avoiding interference from the outside.”

    (SD-Agencies)