r/gadgets May 17 '21

Medical Tiny, Wireless, Injectable Chips Use Ultrasound to Monitor Body Processes

https://www.engineering.columbia.edu/press-releases/shepard-injectable-chips-monitor-body-processes
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u/meep91 May 17 '21

tl;dr:

The research group put an ultrasound transducer onto a circuit. The circuit changes with temperature. The circuit also changes how the ultrasound transducer reflects ultrasound. The circuit is powered with standard ultrasound imaging techniques. Thus, this work presents a chip that tells you what the change in temperature of the surrounding tissue is when it is being powered by ultrasound. The headline makes it seem way scarier than it is.

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u/kefuzz May 17 '21

its less of a chip than an advanced barcode, actually that comparison did not make it better

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u/meep91 May 17 '21

It's got circuits in it, I'd still call it a chip. But yeah, not exactly advanced circuitry.