STRETCHLENS · Deformable platform with thin-film based circuits and ultra-thin Si chips for smart contact lens applications

Deformable platform with thin-film based circuits and ultra-thin Si chips for smart contact lens applications

A smart contact lens is a medical device in direct contact with the eye, having integrated electronic functionalities in order to improve the well-being of the user. In that respect, these devices are envisaged to address diverse complex aspects, such as providing augmented reality, performing biomedical sensing and correcting or improving vision. For the first two application areas, possible approaches have already been demonstrated. However, the use of smart contact lenses to correct vision has only been recently proposed through the help of integrated liquid crystal (LC) cells. The integration of these LC cells in a contact lens is particularly appealing for ophthalmological disorders like iris disorders and presbyopia; the latter alone affects more than 1 billion people. The smart contact lens platform envisages the hybrid integration of electro-optic capabilities (e.g. LC cells), RF transmission (e.g. antenna, ultra-thin Si chip - UTC), specific biomarker sensing (e.g. to identify some types of cancer cells) and thin-film based stretchable electrical interconnections. The platform involves many different challenges regarding the required stretchable nature, due to the spherical shape of the eye and manipulations during insertion/extraction, and coupling of many different microsystems technologies. The STRETCHLENS project has focused on those challenges in order to realize an autonomous miniaturized system capable of interacting with the environment and providing better vision for the users. Additionally, it has developed new knowledge through technological advancement and models of thermoforming in order to optimize the assemblies through design. Thanks to the combination of these different models and fabrication techniques to develop such highly integrated stretchable systems, the project has open up diverse research opportunities in the fields of biomaterial science, stretchable micromechanics, and autonomous biomedical and conformal electronics smart systems.

Data: CORDIS, © European Union