All-nanofiber–based, ultrasensitive, gas-permeable mechanoacoustic sensors for continuous long-term heart monitoring
- 18 March 2020
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
- Vol. 117 (13), 7063-7070
- https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1920911117
Abstract
The prolonged and continuous monitoring of mechanoacoustic heart signals is essential for the early diagnosis of cardiovascular diseases. These bodily acoustics have low intensity and low frequency, and measuring them continuously for long periods requires ultrasensitive, lightweight, gas-permeable mechanoacoustic sensors. Here, we present an all-nanofiber mechanoacoustic sensor, which exhibits a sensitivity as high as 10,050.6 mV Pa−1 in the low-frequency region (<500 Hz). The high sensitivity is achieved by the use of durable and ultrathin (2.5 µm) nanofiber electrode layers enabling a large vibration of the sensor during the application of sound waves. The sensor is ultralightweight, and the overall weight is as small as 5 mg or less. The devices are mechanically robust against bending, and show no degradation in performance even after 1,000-cycle bending. Finally, we demonstrate a continuous long-term (10 h) measurement of heart signals with a signal-to-noise ratio as high as 40.9 decibels (dB).Keywords
Funding Information
- MEXT | JST | Accelerated Innovation Research Initiative Turning Top Science and Ideas into High-Impact Values (JPMJMI17F1)
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