Clothes with electronics inside? Why not!

MIT researchers embedded optoelectronic diodes into fibers which they then used to create clothes. The clothing includes semiconductor devices, incl. LEDs and diode photodetectors.

The optical fibers were made in a classic way. The cylindrical object, which is essentially an enlarged model of the final optical fiber, gets heated up. Under the influence of temperature, it can be stretched, which allows you to create a cable that is then wound on a spool. Sand grain-sized semiconductor diodes connected by copper wires are then added to the fibers.

The fibers obtained in this way were washed ten times to check their strength and prove that the material is suitable as an element of clothing. Thus, its waterproof nature was proven. Another way was to place the photo-sensing fibers in the aquarium. There was a lamp outside, which sent sounds using fast optical signals. The fibers in the reservoir interpreted these signals, converted them into electrical impulses, and these in turn transformed into music. The process took several weeks and was smooth.

MIT professor Yoel Fink admitted that the commercial exploitation of the idea will start next year. The technology is expected to find application in the field of communication and biomedicine. The fibers could be woven into, for example, bandages, used not only to dress wounds, but also to measure the pulse or monitor the oxygen level in the blood.

[Źródło: newelectronics.co.uk; grafika: MIT]