Recent Advances in Liquid Metal-Based Flexible Devices with Highly Sensitive, Plastic and Biocompatible in Bionic Electronics

Liquid metal-based bionic electronics are a new type of wearable electronic device with high sensitivity, high selectivity, high biocompatibility, and high stretchability, which can provide efficient, convenient, and novel applications in the fields of real-time health detection, extreme environments, electromagnetic signal shielding, in vivo detection, and neural signaling. The combination of liquid metal and a flexible substrate mimics Young’s modulus of biological tendons and the flexible structure inside of the human body, thus enabling the simulation of various human tissues and the detection and transmission of physiological signals, which has promoted the application of biomimetic liquid metal electronics in the field of human health detection. In this review, we provide an up-to-date overview of liquid metal-based bionic flexible devices for wearable electronics, explore the performance potential and development status of liquid metals (LMs), and focus on the technical problems and latest research on liquid metal-based bionic electronic devices that we hope to provide meaningful ideas and reference directions in the research of LMs flexible devices. Firstly, we assess the properties, preparation, and working mechanisms of different classes of LMs and present the selection and fabrication of LMs in biomimetic devices and their excellent intrinsic properties. Then, we present some of the interrelated applications of liquid metal-based putative electronic devices for monitoring various biological signals and electronics based on their unique properties. Finally, we summarize the advantages, challenges, and possible future developments of liquid metal-based biomimetic electronics.