Events Calendar

EE-EP Faculty Candidate - Limei Tian, Friday, March 23rd @ 2pm in EEB 132

Speaker: Limei Tian, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Talk Title: Epidermal Electronics and Bioplasmonics for Advanced Health Care

Abstract: Remarkable advances in the design and fabrication of soft, flexible electronics over the past decade form the basis of novel classes of skin-interfaced wearable medical devices capable of continuously measuring and wirelessly transmitting biophysical and biochemical information. These new systems are expected to revolutionize healthcare by improving outcomes and reducing costs, as they become integral parts of modern, connected medical infrastructure. In this talk, I will discuss the recent advances in materials, mechanics and manufacturing approaches of such systems designed for electrophysiology and thermophysiology. I will show that large-area, skin-like electrical interfaces enable, via advanced pattern recognition algorithms, control of robotic prosthesis with sensory feedback provided by electrical stimulation. These platforms are also magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-compatible, thereby allowing for the simultaneous measurements of electroencephalography (EEG) and functional MRI.
In the second part of the talk, I will discuss design and implementation of plasmonic biosensors for simple, portable, sensitive, on-chip biodiagnostics in point-of-care and resource-limited settings. While there has been a tremendous progress in the rational design of plasmonic nanotransducers with high sensitivity and the development of hand-held read-out devices, the translation of these biosensors to resource-limited settings is hindered by the poor thermal, chemical, and environmental stability of the biorecognition elements. Degradation of the sensitive reagents and biodiagnostic chips compromises analytical validity, preventing accurate and timely diagnosis. I will present a novel class of plasmonic biosensors that rely artificial antibodies as recognition elements with excellent thermal and chemical stability. Finally, I will discuss my future research efforts in wearable and implantable electronics to facilitate accurate disease diagnosis and personalized medicine.

Biography: Limei Tian is currently a Beckman Institute Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She earned her Ph.D. from the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science at Washington University in St. Louis in 2014. Her research interests include the design, synthesis and fabrication of novel materials and devices, which can expand the fundamental understanding of biotic-abiotic interactions at various length scales and foster technologies that enable advanced health care, renewable energy, environmental monitoring and homeland security. She is the recipient of National Science Foundation summer institute fellowship (2011), Materials Research Society graduate student award (2013), Chinese Government Award for outstanding students abroad (2014) and Beckman Institute Postdoctoral Fellowship (2015).

Host: EE-Electrophysics

Location: Hughes Aircraft Electrical Engineering Center (EEB) - 132

Audiences: Everyone Is Invited

Contact: Marilyn Poplawski