Principal investigator: Daniel Simon
Animals, plants, and all biological systems communicate in a language of ions and molecules. Modern technology, on the other hand, relies on a language of electrons. With organic electronic materials’ unique properties, we develop “bilingual” tools to bridge this gap.
Organic electronic materials possess a combination of both electronic and ionic/molecular conductivity. They have thus emerged as excellent tools for developing hybrid technologies that effectively interface biological systems with modern electronic technology such as computers and mobile phones – thus the field of organic bioelectronics.
In the Organic Bioelectronics group at the Laboratory of Organic Electronics, we investigate this transduction between electronic signals and ionic/molecular signals with self-organising in vivo electrode materials, “iontronic” chemical delivery and circuitry, cell-electronic interfaces, biosensors, biomimetic systems, and many other areas.
We aim to elucidate fundamental processes in biochemistry and physiology, as well as develop tools for next-generation therapies, human-machine interfacing, and blurring the border between living and technological systems.
Body illustration above: Organic bioelectronics for pain therapy in the spinal cord. The ion pump delivers therapeutic neurotransmitters precisely at the location of pain signaling.
