Human Body-Electrode Interfaces for Wide-Frequency Sensing and Communication: A Review

• Published in: Nanomaterials (Basel, Switzerland) Vol. 11; no. 8; p. 2152
• Main Authors: Polachan, Kurian, Chatterjee, Baibhab, Weigand, Scott, Sen, Shreyas
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 23.08.2021; MDPI
• Subjects: biopotential sensing; Body fluids; body–electrode interface; Communication; Electric contacts; Electrodes; Electrolytes; Free flow; Human body; human body communication; Interfaces; Physics; Review; Skin; body–electrode interface; biopotential sensing; human body communication
• ISSN: 2079-4991; 2079-4991
• DOI: 10.3390/nano11082152

Several on-body sensing and communication applications use electrodes in contact with the human body. Body-electrode interfaces in these cases act as a transducer, converting ionic current in the body to electronic current in the sensing and communication circuits and vice versa. An ideal body-electrode interface should have the characteristics of an electrical short, i.e., the transfer of ionic currents and electronic currents across the interface should happen without any hindrance. However, practical body-electrode interfaces often have definite impedances and potentials that hinder the free flow of currents, affecting the application's performance. Minimizing the impact of body-electrode interfaces on the application's performance requires one to understand the physics of such interfaces, how it distorts the signals passing through it, and how the interface-induced signal degradations affect the applications. Our work deals with reviewing these elements in the context of biopotential sensing and human body communication.