A review of acoustic power transfer for bio-medical implants
Abstract
Bio-implantable devices have been used to perform therapeutic functions such as drug delivery or diagnostic monitoring of physiological parameters. Proper operation of these devices depends on the continuous reliable supply of power. A battery, which is the conventional method to supply energy, is problematic in many of these devices as it limits the lifetime of the implant or dominates the size. In order to power implantable devices, power transfer techniques have been implemented as an attractive alternative to batteries and have received significant research interest in recent years. Acoustic waves are increasingly being investigated as a method for delivering power through human skin and the human body. Acoustic power transfer (APT) has some advantages over other powering techniques such as inductive power transfer and mid range RF power transmission. These advantages include lower absorption in tissue, shorter wavelength enabling smaller transducers, and higher power intensity threshold for safe operation. This paper will cover the basic physics and modeling of APT and will review the current state of acoustic (or ultrasonic) power transfer for biomedical implants. As the sensing and computational elements for biomedical implants are becoming very small, we devote particular attention to the scaling of acoustic and alternative power transfer techniques. Finally, we present current issues and challenges related to the implementation of this technique for powering implantable devices.
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Ultrasonic power transfer has lower tissue absorption compared to RF approaches.
“Although ultrasonic power transfer has lower tissue absorption compared to other techniques like RF approaches, it is crucial to consider the absorption of ultrasonic energy in tissue to avoid exceeding the specific absorption rate (SAR) as an increase in frequency can lead to increased tissue absorption losses due to an extended Rayleigh distance (Basaeri et al., 2016).”
From Comparative analysis of energy transfer mechanisms for neural implants (2024) · cites this paper as Basaeri et al., 2016
An increase in ultrasound frequency can lead to increased tissue absorption losses due to an extended Rayleigh distance.
“Although ultrasonic power transfer has lower tissue absorption compared to other techniques like RF approaches, it is crucial to consider the absorption of ultrasonic energy in tissue to avoid exceeding the specific absorption rate (SAR) as an increase in frequency can lead to increased tissue absorption losses due to an extended Rayleigh distance (Basaeri et al., 2016).”
From Comparative analysis of energy transfer mechanisms for neural implants (2024) · cites this paper as Basaeri et al., 2016
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Self-citation
- Authors
- Basaeri, H., Christensen, D. B., & Roundy, S.
- Affiliations
- University of Utah (US)
- Venue
- Smart Materials and Structures
- Publisher
- IOP Publishing
- Published
- 2016-11-11
- Volume
- 25
- Issue
- 12
- Pages
- 123001
- ISSN
- 0964-1726 (ISSN-L)
- 1361-665X
- OpenAlex
- W2550982639
- Cited by
- 202
- References
- 5
- Citations by year
- 2026: 9 · 2025: 19 · 2024: 27 · 2023: 17 · 2022: 27 · 2021: 35 · 2020: 27 · 2019: 21 · 2018: 12 · 2017: 8
- FWCI
- 6.30
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Licence
- Locations
- Smart Materials and Structures (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- National Science Foundation (ECCS-1408265)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Engineering › Electrical and Electronic Engineering › Wireless Power Transfer Systems
- Physical Sciences › Engineering › Biomedical Engineering › Acoustic Wave Phenomena Research
- Physical Sciences › Engineering › Biomedical Engineering › Wireless Body Area Networks
- Keywords
- acoustic power transfer, ultrasonic power transfer, biomedical implants, wireless power transfer, battery-free power supply, acoustic transducers, tissue absorption, inductive power transfer, RF power transmission
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