Skip to main content

Scientists Discover Way to Send Information into Black Holes Without Using Energy

3 comments

A New Breakthrough Electronics Could Make Wearables Comfortable Even During Intense Exercise

Wearable electronics are becoming an important part of modern technology. Smartwatches, fitness trackers, health-monitoring patches and smart clothing can continuously collect information from the human body. These devices can monitor signals such as heart rate, body movement, temperature and other important biological information.

However, one major challenge remains: comfort.

Many wearable electronic devices are worn directly on the skin for long periods. If they are not breathable, sweat and moisture can become trapped between the device and the skin. This can cause discomfort, skin irritation and reduced performance. Sweat can also interfere with electronic signals, making it more difficult for the device to accurately monitor the body.

Scientists have now developed a new approach that could help solve these problems. Researchers led by Zhang and their team have introduced a new type of moisture-permeable wearable electronic system based on a technology called a three-dimensional liquid diode, or 3D LD.

The technology could help create wearable electronics that are more breathable, comfortable and capable of working reliably even when the wearer is sweating.

The Challenge of Making Wearable Electronics Breathable

Traditional wearable electronics are often designed with protective layers that help shield electronic components from moisture and environmental damage. While these layers can protect the device, they can also reduce breathability.

This creates a difficult engineering problem.

A wearable device needs to be:

  • Comfortable for long-term use

  • Breathable and capable of releasing moisture

  • Resistant to sweat

  • Reliable during physical activity

  • Capable of continuously monitoring biological signals

  • Strong enough to protect its electronic components

Existing research has mainly focused on developing breathable electrodes and permeable materials. However, creating a complete wearable electronic system that combines breathable materials with circuits, electronic components and protective structures has been much more difficult.

In simple terms, making one breathable part is possible. Making the entire electronic system breathable and functional is the real challenge.

A Smart System That Moves Sweat Away From the Skin

The new technology uses a 3D liquid diode to manage sweat and moisture.

The system is designed with areas that have different levels of water-attracting and water-repelling properties. This carefully designed difference in surface wettability creates a one-way pathway for liquid movement.

As a result, sweat can be transported from the skin toward an outlet without requiring an external pump or additional power source.

The system essentially acts like a tiny, built-in liquid transportation network.

According to the researchers, the 3D liquid diode can move sweat at a maximum flow rate of 11.6 millilitres per square centimetre per minute. This is approximately 4,000 times greater than the physiological sweat rate produced during exercise.

This extremely high fluid-handling capability is important because it means the system can quickly remove sweat from the skin, even during intense physical activity.

Better Comfort During Long-Term Wear

One of the biggest advantages of this technology is improved comfort.

When sweat becomes trapped under a wearable device, the skin can feel wet, hot and uncomfortable. Over time, this may also cause irritation. By continuously directing sweat away from the skin, the new system can help maintain a more comfortable skin environment.

The technology also supports moisture exchange, allowing the wearable system to remain more breathable.

This could be especially useful for devices designed for long-term health monitoring. For example, future wearable electronics could potentially be worn for extended periods while continuously tracking important biological signals without causing as much discomfort as conventional devices.

Reliable Signals Even When the User Is Sweating

Sweat does not only create a comfort problem. It can also affect the performance of electronic sensors.

Moisture can interfere with contact between the device and the skin, change electrical conditions and make signal readings less stable. This can be a serious issue for wearable devices that need to monitor biological signals accurately.

The new 3D liquid diode system helps address this challenge by efficiently managing sweat.

The researchers found that the system maintained stable signal-reading behaviour even under sweating conditions. This means the wearable electronics can continue collecting useful information while the user is physically active.

For applications such as fitness monitoring, medical observation and human-machine interaction, reliable signals are extremely important.

A Detachable Design Could Reduce Electronic Waste

Another interesting feature of the technology is its detachable design.

The system includes a replaceable substrate that can help discharge vapour and sweat. Importantly, the soft electronic circuitry can be separated from this part and reused.

This approach could make wearable electronics more sustainable.

At present, many wearable devices are discarded when one part becomes damaged, worn out or unsuitable for continued use. If the electronic components can be reused while only the moisture-management layer is replaced, the overall amount of waste could be reduced.

This could also lower costs over time.

Instead of replacing the entire wearable electronic system, users may only need to replace the part that comes into direct contact with sweat and moisture.

Applications in Skin Electronics and Smart Textiles

The researchers demonstrated the technology in two important areas: skin-integrated electronics and textile-integrated electronics.

Skin-integrated electronics are devices designed to closely attach to the human body. They can be used for monitoring biological signals and studying human movement.

Textile-integrated electronics, on the other hand, are incorporated into fabrics and clothing. These systems could eventually become part of smart shirts, fitness clothing and other wearable technologies.

The ability to integrate the same fundamental moisture-management technology into both skin-based and textile-based systems demonstrates its versatility.

This could open the door to more advanced wearable devices that are not only functional but also more comfortable for everyday use.

A Step Toward More Practical Wearable Technology

The development of breathable wearable electronics represents an important step toward making smart devices more practical.

The future of wearable technology is likely to involve devices that people can wear for hours, days or even longer periods. For this to happen, comfort and breathability will be just as important as electronic performance.

The new 3D liquid diode approach offers a promising solution by combining several important features in one system:

  • High breathability

  • Rapid sweat removal

  • Stable electronic performance

  • Improved user comfort

  • Reusable electronic components

  • Reduced waste

  • Potential for large-scale wearable applications

While more development may still be needed before such systems become common in everyday consumer products, the technology shows how advanced material design and electronics can work together to solve real-world problems.

The Future of Wearables May Be More Comfortable

Wearable electronics are becoming increasingly important in healthcare, sports, fitness and daily life. But for these devices to become truly useful, they must be comfortable enough to wear for long periods.

The new moisture-permeable wearable system developed by Zhang and the research team could help bring that vision closer to reality.

By using a three-dimensional liquid diode to automatically transport sweat away from the skin, the technology combines breathability, comfort and reliable electronic performance. Its detachable design could also make future wearable devices more sustainable and cost-effective.

Ultimately, this research points toward a future where wearable electronics are not simply devices placed on the body. Instead, they could become comfortable, breathable and intelligent systems that work naturally with the human body—even during intense physical activity.

Reference: Zhang, B., Li, J., Zhou, J. et al. A three-dimensional liquid diode for soft, integrated permeable electronics. Nature 628, 84–92 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-024-07161-1

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular

Scientists Discover Way to Send Information into Black Holes Without Using Energy

For years, scientists believed that adding even one qubit (a unit of quantum information) to a black hole needed energy. This was based on the idea that a black hole’s entropy must increase with more information, which means it must gain energy. But a new study by Jonah Kudler-Flam and Geoff Penington changes that thinking. They found that quantum information can be teleported into a black hole without adding energy or increasing entropy . This works through a process called black hole decoherence , where “soft” radiation — very low-energy signals — carry information into the black hole. In their method, the qubit enters the black hole while a new pair of entangled particles (like Hawking radiation) is created. This keeps the total information balanced, so there's no violation of the laws of physics. The energy cost only shows up when information is erased from the outside — these are called zerobits . According to Landauer’s principle, erasing information always needs energy. But ...
3 comments
Read more

A New Type of Wormhole Could Slowly Become Stable Over Time, Scientists Suggest

For many years, wormholes have captured the imagination of scientists and science fiction fans. They are often shown as magical tunnels through space that can connect two faraway places in the universe. If wormholes really exist, they could one day make it possible to travel huge distances in a very short time. But there is one big problem—no one has ever found a real wormhole. They remain only theoretical objects predicted by the mathematics of Einstein's theory of general relativity. Even though they have never been observed, physicists continue studying them because they help us understand the limits of gravity and spacetime. Now, researchers Ditta and Channuie have proposed a new model of a time-dependent traversable wormhole . Unlike many earlier models, their wormhole is not completely still. Instead, it changes with time because energy flows through it. As this flow slowly fades away, the wormhole naturally becomes stable. Their study offers a new and simple way to understan...
Post a Comment
Read more

Black Holes That Never Dies

Black holes are powerful objects in space with gravity so strong that nothing can escape them. In the 1970s, Stephen Hawking showed that black holes can slowly lose energy by giving off tiny particles. This process is called Hawking radiation . Over time, the black hole gets smaller and hotter, and in the end, it disappears completely. But new research by Menezes and his team shows something different. Using a theory called Loop Quantum Gravity (LQG) , they studied black holes with quantum corrections. In their model, the black hole does not vanish completely. Instead, it stops shrinking when it reaches a very small size. This leftover is called a black hole remnant . They also studied something called grey-body factors , which affect how much energy escapes from a black hole. Their findings show that the black hole cools down and stops losing mass once it reaches a minimum mass . This new model removes the idea of a “singularity” at the center of the black hole and gives us a better ...
Post a Comment
Read more