University of Cambridge
High-Density Electrode Arrays for Cutaneous Electrophysiology and Body Surface Potential Mapping Design, fabrication and biomedical applications
Abstract
dc:description.abstractThis thesis investigates the design, fabrication and application of high-density electrode arrays for cutaneous electrophysiology and body surface potential mapping, aiming to improve the precision, wearability and interpretability of next-generation non-invasive monitoring systems. Bridging bioelectronics, materials science and machine learning, the work delivers a platform for advanced spatio-temporal electrophysiological sensing. The first section focuses on the optimisation of electrode array designs. Through modelling and experimental validation, key design parameters are optimised to maximise signal quality and spatio-temporal resolution. Novel conductive polymer composites and 3D profiling methods further improve impedance characteristics and skin-electrode interaction, offering a reproducible strategy for high-performance body surface potential mapping arrays. The second section introduces an innovative textile-based fabrication platform. By adapting blade-coating and lamination techniques for stretchable fabrics, the thesis demonstrates the creation of conformable, scalable electrode arrays with stable electrical performance. Multi-layer architectures with embedded routing components preserve flexibility and signal fidelity, enabling high-density wearable systems suitable for extended biomedical use. In the final section, the developed systems are applied to a range of biomedical tasks, including gesture recognition, posture-sensitive cardiac monitoring, neuroprosthetic decoding and sensorimotor integration, using interpretable machine learning to extract clinically meaningful insights from spatio-temporal signals. A multimodal framework is also presented to predict muscle activity from cortical data, illustrating the system’s potential in neurotechnology as well as a full-arm body surface potential mapping recording to demonstrate scalability. Together, these contributions establish a complete and scalable platform for high-density non-invasive electrophysiology, combining optimal design, robust fabrication and explainable analysis. Future directions include long-term validation, closed-loop therapeutic integration and the exploration of advanced bio-interfacing materials.
Degree
thesis:*- Name dc:type.qualificationname
- Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
- Level dc:type.qualificationlevel
- Doctoral
- Grantor dc:publisher.institution
- University of Cambridge
- Year dc:date.issued
- 2025
Author and committee
dc:creator, dc:contributor.*- Author dc:creator
-
- Ruiz-Mateos Serrano, Ruben
- Advisor dc:contributor.advisor
-
- Malliaras, George Gregory
Subjects
dc:subject × 4Rights
dc:rightsIdentifiers
dc:identifier.*- DOI dc:identifier.doi
- https://doi.org/10.17863/CAM.122242
- OAI identifier oai:identifier
- oai:www.repository.cam.ac.uk:1810/390868