Laboratory on a Plastic Chip Monitors Body Functions

Scientists at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration IZM in Munich have built a lab-on-a-chip, a small single-use cartridge for the biochemical analysis of a drop of blood. It consists of a polycarbonate plate, with a foil of 150 micrometers thickness, on which a filigree network with conductor lines and gold sensors for blood analysis is attached, and a 120 micrometer deep fluid channel for conducting blood to the analysis elements. Inside the sensor chamber antibodies are integrated on electrodes that allow to analyze the concentration of different markers.
Additionally, the team engineered a wristband (pictured above) that can measure body temperature, skin moisture and electromagnetic radiation using plastic chips and sensors only micrometers thick. Lighting elements, sensors and polymer resistances are printed on foils and connected into one system with integrated circuits made of silicon. Both devices can be manufactured cost-effectively both as individual sheets as well as by roll-to-roll production in larger batches.
Full storye: Plastic chips monitor body functions…
(hat tip: Engadget)