Center for the Advancement of Wearable Technologies (CAWT): Engineered (Bio)Interfaces, Energy Harvesting/Storage and Data Analytics for Health and Diagnostic Monitoring

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This project aims to build significant research capacity in Puerto Rico (PR) in the wearable technology field by forming the Center for the Advancement of Wearable Technologies (CAWT). The center will build on the research capacity developed by prior nanoscience research activities funded by the NSF Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) and managed by the PR EPSCoR office. CAWT is structured around three goals: 1) advance the fundamental and applied science of biosensors, portable power and storage, and data analytics; 2) provide an engaged and diverse workforce for the nation's wearable technology sector; and 3) stimulate economic development together with PR's medical device industry. PR EPSCoR will utilize a rich network of academic, industry, and government partnerships to access state-of-the-art equipment, research opportunities for trainees and build a robust innovation ecosystem. The project will also leverage established infrastructure in PR for education, outreach, workforce development activities to make significant strides towards developing a diverse, next-generation STEM workforce that is well-aligned with the science priorities of the jurisdiction. PR EPSCoR will build a Center for the Advancement of Wearable Technologies (CAWT) to leverage the jurisdiction's research strengths in nanotechnology towards advancing the wearable technology field. Providing easy access to new types of wearable devices that sense and monitor health conditions and provide consistent, reproducible, and personalized medical information is essential for continued growth within the wearable technology sector. Wearable devices face three fundamental research and development challenges: 1) ensuring that functional components made of materials that are fully compatible with end users; 2) generating adequate and lasting power; and 3) updating data analytics to utilize and manage steady streams of data generated wearable devices. The CAWT motivates its research agenda by these challenges and is thus organized into three Interdisciplinary Research Groups (IRGs). IRG1 focuses on the design of optical and electrochemical sensors, microfluidic platforms, and characterization studies of materials components that come in direct contact with biological materials. IRG2 aims to harness existing low-level energy sources to drive low-power wearable devices and investigate new multicomponent battery materials. IRG3 aims to develop big data tools to address materials design problems and support the experimental design of projects within IRG1 and IRG2. The CAWT seeks to build a research agenda that creates novel and sustainable research lines while also building up a workforce that can address needs within the local medical device industry. This project will realize PR EPSCoR's goal of building research capacity, advancing scientific discovery in wearable technology, developing a well-trained and diverse scientific workforce, and promoting economic development throughout the region.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.