Wireless microtransducer enabled minimally invasive medical devices

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The proposed research program is aimed at exploring high-precision, robust methods for wireless actuation and sensing through microdevices for a variety of minimally invasive medical applications. The main objectives include developing novel technologies to effectively treat localized lesions such as cancers and control disease- induced/postoperative pains, as well as enabling chronic diagnosis of brain aneurysms. Successful research will contribute to saving lives and improving quality of life for relevant patients in Canada and around the world. Toward realizing these goals, based on the research achievements in the previous Discovery program, this research will advance the wireless transducer technologies to develop implantable micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) with micromachined actuators and sensors that are powered/controlled using external radio-frequency (RF) electromagnetic fields. Wireless microactuators will be developed to enable implantable/wearable MEMS drug delivery devices, including miniaturized patient-controlled analgesia devices; we will explore effective methods for selective wireless control of multiple active micro pumps and valves in order to realize multiple-drug release with high-precision dosage control. The wireless-sensor study will focus on telemetric monitoring of cerebral and other aneurysms through embolization coils, commonly implanted in aneurysms to prevent their ruptures. This study will investigate the feasibility of wireless tracking of aneurysms' internal status by developing embolization "antenna" coils with integrated sensing functions for early detection of blood recanalization, a common failure of the coil embolization. The development of microfabrication methods for the proposed devices will be a critical part of this research program. An emphasis will be placed on developing methods to manufacture free-form, 3-dimensional metallic micro/nanostructures; this will be applied to the formation of free-standing micro/nano-coil arrays toward enabling effective RF energy transfer and significant miniaturization in the targeted devices while providing opportunities for a broad range of MEMS and RF applications.