Issue 12, 2015

Connecting electrodes with light: one wire, many electrodes

Abstract

The requirement of a wire to each electrode is central to the design of any electronic device but can also be a major restriction. For example it entails space restrictions and rigid device architecture in multi-electrode devices. The finite space that is taken up by the array of electrical terminals and conductive pads also severely limits the achievable density of electrodes in the device. Here it is shown that a travelling light pointer can be used to form transient electrical connections anywhere on a monolithic semiconductor electrode that is fitted with a single peripheral electrical terminal. This is achieved using hydrogen terminated silicon electrodes that are modified with well-defined organic monolayers. It is shown that electrochemical information can be either read from or written onto these surfaces. Using this concept it is possible to form devices that are equivalent to a conventional electrode array but that do not require a predetermined architecture, and where each element of the array is temporally “connected” using light stimulus; a step change in capability for electrochemistry.

Graphical abstract: Connecting electrodes with light: one wire, many electrodes

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Edge Article
Submitted
13 אוג 2015
Accepted
28 אוג 2015
First published
28 אוג 2015
This article is Open Access

All publication charges for this article have been paid for by the Royal Society of Chemistry
Creative Commons BY license

Chem. Sci., 2015,6, 6769-6776

Author version available

Connecting electrodes with light: one wire, many electrodes

M. H. Choudhury, S. Ciampi, Y. Yang, R. Tavallaie, Y. Zhu, L. Zarei, V. R. Gonçales and J. J. Gooding, Chem. Sci., 2015, 6, 6769 DOI: 10.1039/C5SC03011K

This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported Licence. You can use material from this article in other publications without requesting further permissions from the RSC, provided that the correct acknowledgement is given.

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