A Miniature Potentiostat for Impedance Spectroscopy and Cyclic Voltammetry in Wearable Sensor Integration

TL;DR

This paper introduces a low-power, wearable potentiostat capable of impedance spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry, designed for integration with biochemical sensors for at-home health diagnostics.

Contribution

It presents a miniaturized, Bluetooth-enabled potentiostat using an ARM M4 microcontroller, optimized for wearable health monitoring applications.

Findings

Comparable accuracy to commercial benchtop potentiostats

Low power consumption suitable for wearable devices

Successful integration with sensor arrays for health diagnostics

Abstract

A potentiostat is an analytical device and a crucial component in electrochemical instruments used for studying chemical reaction mechanisms, with potential applications in early diagnosis of disease or critical health conditions. Conventional potentiostats are typically benchtop devices designed for laboratory use, whereas a wearable potentiostat can be interfaced with biochemical sensors for disease diagnostics at home. This work presents a low-power potentiostat designed to connect with a sensor array consisting of eight to ten working electrodes. The potentiostat is capable of running Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy and Cyclic Voltammetry. The system is powered by lithium-ion batteries and uses Bluetooth for data transmission to the user. A single ARM M4 microcontroller, integrated with a Bluetooth low-energy radio module, controls the entire system. The accuracy, reliability, and power efficiency of the potentiostat were evaluated and compared against existing commercial benchtop potentiostats. Additionally, we have outlined future steps to enhance circuit miniaturization and power efficiency, aiming to develop fully integrated wearable sensing devices comparable in size to a wristwatch.