US-20260124375-A1 - BIODEGRADABLE CIRCUIT AND ELECTRONIC APPARATUS

US20260124375A1US 20260124375 A1US20260124375 A1US 20260124375A1US-20260124375-A1

Abstract

A biodegradable circuit is disclosed. The biodegradable circuit may include a resistor. In one example, the resistor may include a substrate, a plurality of wirings disposed on an upper surface of the substrate, and a protective layer covering the plurality of wirings. For example, the upper surface of the protective layer may be divided into a first region including the center of the upper surface of the protective layer and a second region surrounding the first region and directly adjacent to an edge of the upper surface of the protective layer, and the thickness of the protective layer in the first region may be greater than the thickness of the protective layer in the second region.

Inventors

Yong Suk Yang
Kyung Hyun KIM
Ji-young Oh

Assignees

ELECTRONICS AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS RESEARCH INSTITUTE

Dates

Publication Date: 20260507
Application Date: 20250811
Priority Date: 20241107

Claims (12)

1 . A biodegradable circuit comprising a resistor, wherein the resistor comprises: a substrate; a plurality of wirings being disposed on an upper surface of the substrate; and a protective layer configured to cover an upper portion of the plurality of wirings; wherein an upper surface of the protective layer is divided into: a first region including a center of the upper surface of the protective layer; and a second region surrounding the first region and directly adjacent to an edge of the upper surface of the protective layer, and wherein a thickness of the protective layer in the first region is greater than a thickness of the protective layer in the second region.
2 . The biodegradable circuit of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of wirings comprise magnesium (Mg).
3 . A biodegradable circuit comprising a resistor, wherein the resistor comprises: a substrate; a plurality of wirings disposed on an upper surface of the substrate; a first protective layer configured to cover an upper portion of the plurality of wirings; a second protective layer disposed on an upper surface of the first protective layer, wherein an upper surface of the resistor is divided into: a first region including a center of the upper surface of the resistor; and a second region surrounding the first region and directly adjacent to an edge of the upper surface of the resistor, wherein an area of the first protective layer corresponds to an area of the upper surface of the resistor, which is equal to a sum of an area of the first region and an area of the second region, and wherein an area of the second protective layer is equal to the area of the first region.
4 . The biodegradable circuit of claim 3 , wherein wirings included in the first region have thicker protection than wirings included in the second region.
5 . The biodegradable circuit of claim 4 , wherein the plurality of wirings comprise magnesium (Mg).
6 . A biodegradable electronic device configured to communicate with a wireless communication device and to control an electrical stimulator and a drug dispenser, the biodegradable electronic device comprising: a memory unit configured to store a program including computer-executable instructions; a controller unit configured to execute the program; an input/output signal generator configured to generate an input voltage and an output voltage; a biodegradable reference signal generator comprising a resistor and configured to generate a reference signal; and a PWM (pulse width modulation) pulse controller configured to generate a signal for commanding turn-on or turn-off operations of the wireless communication device, the electrical stimulator, and the drug dispenser, wherein the PWM pulse controller generates the signal for commanding the turn-on or turn-off operations of the wireless communication device, the electrical stimulator, and the drug dispenser based on at least one of the computer-executable instructions stored in the program executed by the controller unit, the input voltage and output voltage generated by the input/output signal generator, and the reference signal generated by the biodegradable reference signal generator, and wherein the reference signal is adjusted based on whether or to what extent the resistor has biodegraded.
7 . The biodegradable electronic device of claim 6 , wherein the resistor comprises a biodegradable protective layer and biodegradable wirings.
8 . The biodegradable electronic device of claim 6 , wherein the resistor comprises: a substrate; a plurality of wirings being disposed on an upper surface of the substrate; and a protective layer configured to cover an upper portion of the plurality of wirings; wherein an upper surface of the protective layer is divided into: a first region including a center of the upper surface of the protective layer; and a second region surrounding the first region and directly adjacent to an edge of the upper surface of the protective layer, and wherein a thickness of the protective layer in the first region is greater than a thickness of the protective layer in the second region.
9 . The biodegradable electronic device of claim 6 , wherein the resistor comprises: a substrate; a plurality of wirings disposed on an upper surface of the substrate; a first protective layer configured to cover an upper portion of the plurality of wirings; a second protective layer disposed on an upper surface of the first protective layer, wherein an upper surface of the resistor is divided into: a first region including a center of the upper surface of the resistor; and a second region surrounding the first region and directly adjacent to an edge of the upper surface of the resistor, wherein an area of the first protective layer corresponds to an area of the upper surface of the resistor, which is equal to a sum of an area of the first region and an area of the second region, and wherein an area of the second protective layer is equal to the area of the first region.
10 . The biodegradable electronic device of claim 9 , wherein wirings included in the first region have thicker protection than wirings included in the second region.
11 . The biodegradable electronic device of claim 8 , wherein the plurality of wirings comprise magnesium (Mg).
12 . The biodegradable electronic device of claim 9 , wherein the plurality of wirings comprise magnesium (Mg).

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2024-0157088 filed on Nov. 7, 2024, and Korean Patent Application No. 10-2025-0035151 filed on Mar. 19, 2025 in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosures of which are incorporated by reference herein in their entireties. BACKGROUND 1. Field of the Invention The present disclosure relates to a biodegradable circuit and an electronic apparatus. 2. Description of Related Art Recently, with the advancement of electronic device technologies in the biomedical and medical fields, it has become possible to implement biodegradable electronic products that can be implanted in the human body to monitor necessary biological signals for clinical purposes and then decompose as needed when they are no longer required. This is achieved not merely by simply using materials or devices with biodegradable properties, but by utilizing such decomposition characteristics from a system-level perspective as well. Biodegradable devices are often packaged with protective materials. The packaging material primarily determines the operational lifespan of the device by preventing direct contact between the device and bodily fluids for a specified period. These protective materials enable controlled decomposition or dissolution of the materials used in conventional implantable electronic devices within the human body and, by utilizing the packaging function, help minimize side effects such as inflammation, toxicity, or immune responses that may arise from long-term physical contact during biodegradation inside the body. However, in order to simultaneously ensure both a stable biodegradation process and an optimized operation process for biodegradable devices and systems within the body, simply packaging the device with the protective materials has its limitations. Accordingly, ongoing research seeks to address these limitations. SUMMARY The present disclosure relates to the biodegradable circuit and the electronic apparatus. A biodegradable circuit according to an embodiment of the present disclosure comprises a resistor. The resistor comprises, a substrate, a plurality of wirings being disposed on an upper surface of the substrate, and a protective layer configured to cover an upper portion of the plurality of wirings. An upper surface of the protective layer is divided into a first region including a center of the upper surface of the protective layer, and a second region surrounding the first region and directly adjacent to an edge of the upper surface of the protective layer. A thickness of the protective layer in the first region is greater than a thickness of the protective layer in the second region. A biodegradable circuit according to another embodiment of the present disclosure comprising a resistor. The resistor comprises a substrate, a plurality of wirings disposed on an upper surface of the substrate, a first protective layer configured to cover an upper portion of the plurality of wirings, a second protective layer disposed on an upper surface of the first protective layer. An upper surface of the resistor is divided into a first region including a center of the upper surface of the resistor and a second region surrounding the first region and directly adjacent to an edge of the upper surface of the resistor. An area of the first protective layer corresponds to an area of the upper surface of the resistor, which is equal to a sum of an area of the first region and an area of the second region. An area of the second protective layer is equal to the area of the first region. In one embodiment, wirings included in the first region have thicker protection than wirings included in the second region. In one embodiment, the plurality of wirings may be made of magnesium (Mg). A biodegradable electronic device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure configured to communicate with a wireless communication device and to control an electrical stimulator and a drug dispenser, the biodegradable electronic device comprises, a memory unit configured to store a program including computer-executable instructions, a controller unit configured to execute the program, an input/output signal generator configured to generate an input voltage and an output voltage, a biodegradable reference signal generator comprising a resistor and configured to generate a reference signal, and a PWM (pulse width modulation) pulse controller configured to generate a signal for commanding turn-on or turn-off operations of the wireless communication device, the electrical stimulator, and the drug dispenser. The PWM pulse controller generates the signal for commanding the turn-on or turn-off operations of the wireless communication device, the electrical stimulator, and the drug dispenser based on at least one of the computer-executable instructions stored in the program executed by the controller unit, the in