A bioinspired flexible organic artificial afferent nerve

TLDR

Sensory nerves transmit touch, pain, and temperature sensations to the brain, and Kim et al. employ organic electronics to emulate this function. They combine a pressure sensor, a ring oscillator, and an ion‑gel gated transistor into an artificial mechanoreceptor. This device senses multiple pressure inputs, converts them into signals, and drives a cockroach leg in an oscillatory motion.

Abstract

I've got a feeling Sensory (or afferent) nerves bring sensations of touch, pain, or temperature variation to the central nervous system and brain. Using the tools and materials of organic electronics, Kim et al. combined a pressure sensor, a ring oscillator, and an ion gel–gated transistor to form an artificial mechanoreceptor (see the Perspective by Bartolozzi). The combination allows for the sensing of multiple pressure inputs, which can be converted into a sensor signal and used to drive the motion of a cockroach leg in an oscillatory pattern. Science , this issue p. 998 ; see also p. 966