Bioresorbable Primary Battery Anodes Built on Core-Double-Shell Zinc Microparticle Networks

Bioresorbable implantable electronics require power sources that are also bioresorbable with controllable electrical output and lifetime. In this paper, we report a bioresorbable zinc primary battery anode filament based on a zinc microparticle (MP) network coated with chitosan and Al2O3 double shells. When discharged in 0.9% NaCl saline, a Zn MP filament with a 0.17 × 2 mm2 cross-sectional area exhibited a stable voltage output of 0.55 V at a current of 0.01 mA. Covered by chitosan and Al2O3 double shells, the zinc MP filament exhibited a directional dissolution behavior with a tunable lifetime approximately linear to its length. A stable 200 h discharging time was achieved with a 15 mm Zn MP filament. The maximum output power was found to be 12 μW at 0.03 mA for one filament. The linearity relationship between the current output and the filament cross-sectional area suggested a facile strategy to raise the power output at constant discharging voltage. The filaments could also be connected in series and in parallel to boost its overall voltage and current output, demonstrating their excellent integration capability. This work presents a promising pathway toward bioresorbable transient batteries with controllable lifetime and power output, demonstrating a great potential for powering transient implantable biomedical devices.