Stretchable, touch-sensitive electronics

Stanford researchers have set the stage for an evolution in electronics by taking the concept of 'artificial skin' to the next level, demonstrating not only a stretchable circuitry that can feel the touch of a ladybug, but a manufacturing process to mass produce this circuitry. Of the many ways that humans make sense of our world - with our eyes, ears, nose and mouth - none is perhaps less appreciated than our tactile and versatile hands. Thanks to our sensitive fingertips, we can feel the heat before we touch the flame, or sense the softness of a newborn's cheek. Pixelated electronics built with skin-like materials conform to the complex curves of a hand. (Image credit: L.A. Cicero) But people with prosthetic limbs live in a world without touch. Restoring some semblance of this sensation has been a driving force behind Stanford chemical engineer Zhenan Bao 's decades-long quest to create stretchable, electronically-sensitive synthetic materials. Such a breakthrough could one day serve as skin-like coverings for prosthetics.