Flexible Electronics and Neuromorphic Engineering

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Our mission is to develop technology that enables low-power, flexible, and neuromorphic electronic devices and systems for secure on-body AI.

Inspired by the efficiency of the nervous system, we aim to create cognitive computers capable of processing large, complex, and dynamic signals in real time while minimizing power consumption. Our focus areas include personalized precision healthcare, diagnosis, neuro-prosthetics, and neuro-robotics. Our research covers hardware and software aspects, employing neuroscience principles in (1) neuromorphic electronics and sensors, (2) neuromorphic circuit design, (3) artificial neural networks for data processing, and (4) machine learning.

FTE-FENE specializes in flexible electronic nanomaterials such as carbon nanotubes, graphene, MoS2, Si nanowires, ultrathin films, and process technology for flexible electronic devices, as well as tactile and thermal transducers. Since 2018, our research has expanded to include e-skin, neuromorphic analog circuit design, artificial neural networks (including spiking neural networks and constructive neural networks), and machine learning.

Some recent achievements include the development of self-powered and event-driven tactile sensors, flexible e-skins, neuromorphic analog circuits that mimic tactile sensory neurons, and an efficient object classifier based on spiking neural networks.

Ongoing projects

Self-Assisted Electric Field-Effect Thermoelectric Generators-SELFTEG

2020.01-2023.12, Vetenskapsrådet (VR). This project aims to develop energy converters by combing thermoelectric generators and triboelectric nanogenerators for energy harvesting and thermal sensing.

Wireless Brain-Connect inteRfAce TO machineS: B-CRATOS, H2020-FETOPEN

2021-2025. In this consortium project, FTE-FENE is responsible for development of beyond the state-of the-art electronic skin for tactile feedback used on prosthetic upper limbs.

Learn more about B-CRATOS

SSF, BOS: Software Principles and Techniques for Body-centric Operating System, WP 2, Software for energy-efficient processing of tactile and tremor signals

2022-2027. In this consortium project, FTE-FENE aims to develop neural networks and machine learning for energy-efficient processing of tactile and tremor signals.

Previous projects

Graphene technology

Funded by Knut & Alice Wallenberg foundation (KAW). As the key to the application of graphene in general, we work on growth of single-layer graphene, development of high quality graphene transfer, scalable process technology for graphene field effect transistors, surface functionalization for graphene sensors, and heterogeneous integration of graphene for flexible devices.

Graphene for interconnects

Funded by Swedish Foundation for Strategic Research (SSF). The purpose of this project is to develop high performance printed graphene interconnects processed at low temperature for large area flexible electronic devices. Specifically, we work on solution-processable scalable production of graphene nanoplateletts from graphite, graphene composites, formulation of graphene inks and post-treatment of printed thin films.

Soft thermoelectrics

Funded by Swedish Foundation for Strategic Research (SSF). If thermoelectric devices for wasted heat harvesting are capable of being soft, conformal to complicated surfaces and, even more, compliant to a deformable object while benign to human body and environment, their potential of applications will be substantially increased. In this project, we focus on process development for building up stretchable thermoelectric generators using elastomer as substrate, exploration of nanocarbon materials for printable thermoelectric materials and study in-depth the hetero-junctions for reliability and robustness of thermoelectric generators.

Si based thermoelectrics

Funded by Vetenskapsrådet (VR). The best thermoelectric materials, Bi2Te3 and Sb2Te3 used in conventional thermoelectric generator (TEG) operating in the range of low temperature are characterized by their figure of merit ZT~1. They are environmentally harmful, expensive, in contrast to Si, an abundant, cheap and non-toxic material. In addition, Si technology has been well established for the ultra-large scale integrated circuits widely used today. However, Si has too low ZT values (~0.01 at room temperature) to be useful in TE applications. The main purpose of this project is to replace the existing thermoelectric materials with Si by developing phononic structures to boost the ZT.

Group members

Research leader: Zhibin Zhang
Group members: Libo Chen, Nazibul Hasan Mohammed, Jiaqi Xing, Sophie Ziske

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