title: Highly Crumpled All-Carbon Transistors for Brain Activity Recording.
abstract: Neural probes based on graphene field-effect transistors have been demonstrated. Yet, the minimum detectable signal of graphene transistor-based probes is inversely proportional to the square root of the active graphene area. This fundamentally limits the scaling of graphene transistor-based neural probes for improved spatial resolution in brain activity recording. Here, we address this challenge using highly crumpled all-carbon transistors formed by compressing down to 16% of its initial area. All-carbon transistors, chemically synthesized by seamless integration of graphene channels and hybrid graphene/carbon nanotube electrodes, maintained structural integrity and stable electronic properties under large mechanical deformation, whereas stress-induced cracking and junction failure occurred in conventional graphene/metal transistors. Flexible, highly crumpled all-carbon transistors were further verified for in vivo recording of brain activity in rats. These results highlight the importance of advanced material and device design concepts to make improvements in neuroelectronics.
authors.affiliation: CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology , Beijing 100190, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Long
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Department of Engineering Mechanics, Tsinghua University , Beijing 100084, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Yan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, College of Engineering, Peking University , Beijing 100871, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Wenjing
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, College of Engineering, Peking University , Beijing 100871, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Enzheng
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Shi
authors.affiliation: CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology , Beijing 100190, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Wenjing
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Wei
authors.affiliation: CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology , Beijing 100190, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Xinming
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, College of Engineering, Peking University , Beijing 100871, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Anyuan
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-2282-716X
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cao
authors.affiliation: Department of Engineering Mechanics, Tsinghua University , Beijing 100084, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Yanping
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Cao
authors.affiliation: CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology , Beijing 100190, People's Republic of China.|CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology , 320 Yue Yang Road, Shanghai 200031, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Ying
authors.identifier: 0000-0003-2965-7287
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Fang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000502:physiology; D003198:Computer Simulation; D004566:Electrodes; D004867:Equipment Design / Q000379:methods*; D006108:Graphite / Q000737:chemistry*; D018613:Microscopy, Confocal; D036103:Nanotechnology; D037742:Nanotubes, Carbon / Q000737:chemistry*; D010316:Particle Size; D051381:Rats; D013499:Surface Properties; D014173:Transistors, Electronic
chemical_list: D037742:Nanotubes, Carbon; D006108:Graphite
keywords: Graphene; carbon nanotubes; crumpling; neural probes; transistors