This tiny processor can be placed under the skin to measure body temperature

We already knew about the Micro Mote, the smallest computer in the world. But researchers at Columbia University in the United States wanted to go further by setting up the smallest injectable system integrated on a single chip. Concretely, it is about a tiny processor which is not even 01 mm3 of volume. According to their study, this processor is so small that it can fit in a hypodermic needle and can only be seen through a microscope.

This processor measures body temperature in real time

This system is said to have been designed to measure body temperature during ultrasound therapy. This processor is only 0.3 millimeters square and uses ultrasound to communicate, the wavelength being much shorter than for radio frequencies on the same frequency, reports Science Advances.

In addition, the researchers also equipped this mini processor with a piezoelectric transducer to allow communications and ultrasound power. This processor thus embeds a low-power temperature sensor which allows it to measure body temperature in real time.

Researchers have previously performed intramuscular injection tests of this processor on mice and found that the processor can operate at a depth of 2cm, with the theoretical limit being 5.7cm.