Hydrogel-Based Flexible Electronics and Devices

Dear Colleagues,

For the past 60 years, the field of hydrogels has received considerable attention; they are biocompatible, soft, and highly flexible, making them suitable for a wide range of applications such as biomedical sensors, wearable electronics, soft robotics, drug delivery systems, tissue engineering, artificial organs, stretchable and biocompatible electronics, energy harvesting, and environmental monitoring. Hydrogel-based flexible electronics and devices represent a promising area of research and development at the intersection of materials science, electronics, and biomedical engineering. Hydrogels are three-dimensional, crosslinked networks of water-absorbing polymers that can hold a large amount of water while maintaining their structural integrity. The ability of hydrogels to absorb water results from hydrophilic functional groups attached to their polymeric structure, while their resistance to dissolution arises from cross-links between network chains. Many materials, both naturally occurring (collagen, gelatin) and synthetic, fit the definition of hydrogels. During the last three decades, natural hydrogels were gradually replaced by synthetic hydrogels with higher durability, improved water absorption capacity, and higher gel strength. While hydrogel-based flexible electronics offer numerous advantages, there are challenges to overcome, such as ensuring long-term stability, improving conductivity, and addressing potential biocompatibility issues.

Research in hydrogel-based flexible electronics and devices continues to advance, and it holds the potential to revolutionize various fields, from healthcare to robotics, by enabling the development of more comfortable, adaptable, and biocompatible electronic systems. Therefore, new submissions in our Special Issue of Gels, entitled “Hydrogel-Based Flexible Electronics and Devices”, especially application-oriented submissions, are welcome.

Dr. Paul Chesler
Dr. Mihai Anastasescu
Dr. Cristian Hornoiu
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Gels is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• hydrogel applications
• flexible devices
• flexible electronics
• wearable electronics
• flexible biosensors
• soft robotics