{"335611":{"#nid":"335611","#data":{"type":"event","title":"Neural Engineering Center Seminar","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0022Softening Polymer Substrates for Chronically Soft Neural Interfaces\u0022\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWalter Voit, PhD\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EAssistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EMaterial Science \u0026amp; Engineering\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EUniversity of Texas at Dallas\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/strong\u003EWe describe smart engineered shape memory polymer (SMP) substrates, which have been proposed for use in biomedical devices extensively over the past decade. Specifically, the paradigm of softening bioelectronics medicines enables devices such as neural interfaces to be implanted while mechanically rigid and subsequently soften in physiological conditions. Harris et al. have demonstrated softening intracortical electrodes based on the significant swelling of thermally and water sensitive polymer substrates. Building upon this work, we have further demonstrated the fabrication, characterization and demonstration of softening neural interfaces with 5 micron minimum feature sizes patterned using full-\u0026shy;\u2010photolithography reaching temperature up to 85\u00b0C on softening substrates with minimal swelling. SMP substrates are thiol-\u0026shy;\u2010 ene\/acrylate copolymers designed to position the glass transition temperature (Tg) to near 55\u00b0C, such that after plasticization in fluid, the Tg shifts 20\u00b0C triggering softening. This paradigm allows surgeons adequate time for implantation, and maintains sub 3% swelling of the substrate to minimize abiotic device failure and delamination of the patterned Parylene-\u0026shy;\u2010C barrier coating. We balance mechanical buckling forces, created by modulus mismatches between the device modulus at insertion and that of both agarose gel (in vitro experimental model) and the cortex of a laboratory rat. Other studies have shown how higher modulus materials, such as silicon, tungsten, Parylene-\u0026shy;\u2010C and polyimides maintain sufficient stiffness to allow implantation into tissue. Our devices match these supra 1 GPa insertion properties, but chronically behave mechanically more similarly to polydimethylsiloxane.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EFaculty Host: \u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:rbutera@gatech.edu\u0022\u003ERobert Butera, Ph.D.\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ETrainee Host: \u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:yapatel@gatech.edu\u0022\u003EYogi Patel\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":"","field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"\u0022Softening Polymer Substrates for Chronically Soft Neural Interfaces\u0022 - Walter Voit, PhD - University of Texas at Dallas"}],"uid":"27960","created_gmt":"2014-10-20 15:31:06","changed_gmt":"2017-04-13 21:21:23","author":"Chris Calleri","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","field_event_time":{"event_time_start":"2014-10-31T13:00:00-04:00","event_time_end":"2014-10-31T14:00:00-04:00","event_time_end_last":"2014-10-31T14:00:00-04:00","gmt_time_start":"2014-10-31 17:00:00","gmt_time_end":"2014-10-31 18:00:00","gmt_time_end_last":"2014-10-31 18:00:00","rrule":null,"timezone":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"335781":{"id":"335781","type":"image","title":"Walter Voit, PhD - University of Texas at Dallas","body":null,"created":"1449245201","gmt_created":"2015-12-04 16:06:41","changed":"1475895048","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:50:48","alt":"Walter Voit, PhD - University of Texas at Dallas","file":{"fid":"200501","name":"voit-2013-12_0.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/voit-2013-12_0_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/voit-2013-12_0_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":229370,"path_740":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/voit-2013-12_0_0.jpg?itok=tp1cfXYh"}},"335791":{"id":"335791","type":"image","title":"Neural Engineering Center Seminar","body":null,"created":"1449245201","gmt_created":"2015-12-04 16:06:41","changed":"1475895048","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:50:48","alt":"Neural Engineering Center Seminar","file":{"fid":"200502","name":"neuralengineering-solid-2lines-539874.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/neuralengineering-solid-2lines-539874_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/neuralengineering-solid-2lines-539874_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":91127,"path_740":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/neuralengineering-solid-2lines-539874_0.jpg?itok=4JYGla8c"}}},"media_ids":["335781","335791"],"related_links":[{"url":"http:\/\/voitlab.com\/","title":"Voit lab"},{"url":"http:\/\/www.neuro.gatech.edu\/","title":"Neuro@Tech website"}],"groups":[{"id":"1254","name":"Wallace H. Coulter Dept. of Biomedical Engineering"}],"categories":[],"keywords":[{"id":"1612","name":"BME"},{"id":"248","name":"IBB"},{"id":"166896","name":"seminar"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[{"id":"1795","name":"Seminar\/Lecture\/Colloquium"}],"invited_audience":[{"id":"78751","name":"Undergraduate students"},{"id":"78761","name":"Faculty\/Staff"},{"id":"174045","name":"Graduate students"}],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EFaculty Host:\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:rbutera@gatech.edu\u0022\u003ERobert Butera, Ph.D.\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ETrainee Host:\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:yapatel@gatech.edu\u0022\u003EYogi Patel\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}