Multimodal Wireless Wound Sensors via Higher-Order Parity-Time Symmetry.

Chronic wounds have emerged as a significant healthcare burden, affecting millions of patients worldwide and presenting a substantial challenge to healthcare systems. The diagnosis and management of chronic wounds are notably intricate, with inappropriate management contributing significantly to the amputation of limbs. In this work, we propose a compact, wireless, battery-free, and multimodal wound monitoring system to facilitate timely and effective wound treatment. The design of this monitoring system draws on the principles of higher-order parity-time symmetry, which incorporates spatially balanced gain, neutral, and loss, embodied by an active - RLC reader, an LC intermediator, and a passive RLC sensor, respectively. Our experimental results demonstrate that this wireless wound sensor can detect temperature (T), relative humidity (RH), pressure (P), and pH with exceptional sensitivity and robustness, which are critical biomarkers for assessing wound healing status. Our in vitro experiments further validate the reliable sensing performance of the wound sensor on human skin and fish. This multifunctional monitoring system may provide a promising solution for the development of futuristic wearable sensors and integrated biomedical microsystems.