Tanya Weaver Wed 28 Jan 2026
Collected at: https://eandt.theiet.org/2026/01/28/computer-chip-shrunk-down-hair-thin-flexible-fibre
A flexible chip as thin as a human hair could pave the way for a new generation of electronic wearable clothing, according to a new study.
Researchers at Fudan University in Shanghai, China, have built complex electronic circuits inside thin, flexible fibres. When woven into fabric, these ‘fibre chips’ could process information and handle data to enable clothing to work like a computer.
As the fibre chips are closed loops – containing power, sensors and processors in one string – they are able to function as independent intelligent systems without any external hardware.
This could lead to a new generation of even smarter wearables for use in a range of applications such as health monitoring and interactive clothing.
At 50 micrometres in diameter (the average human hair is around 70 micrometres) they are also thin enough to be used in medical applications for smart implants.
Computer chips are traditionally rigid and brittle, making them difficult to bend or fold. To overcome this issue, the team drew inspiration from how sushi rolls are made.
Instead of building the electronics on the sheet, as on traditional chips, the team placed the circuits on a very thin, elastic sheet. During this process, they also added a protective polymer layer to make the chip more resilient.
They then rolled the sheet into a tight, multilayered sushi-like spiral. This allowed them to pack 100,000 transistors per centimetre into a tiny space without the circuits snapping or losing their connection.
During durability tests, the fibre remained fully functional even after being run over by a container lorry, withstanding 100,000 bends, stretching over 30% and undergoing 100,000 cycles of rubbing.
The team’s experiments also proved that a 1mm-long fibre chip can hold 10,000 transistors, giving it the same processing power as a chip used in a heart pacemaker. If the fibre is extended to one metre, it could hold millions of transistors, matching the power levels of a standard desktop computer processor.
Professor Peng Huisheng, co-author of the study, said: “Our fibre-integrated circuits bridge the gap between flexible wearables and true intelligent systems, enabling new ways for people to interact with electronics.”
For instance, the technology could lead to smarter tactile gloves that are able to sense and simulate the feel of different objects. During VR gaming, these gloves could provide users with precise, distributed tactile feedback. If worn by surgeons they could be used to ‘feel’ tissue during remote robotic surgery.
The researchers told Chinese media outlet Xinhua that they were collaborating with a hospital to explore the use of the fibre chip in cardiovascular surgery.
Chen Peining, a researcher at Fudan University’s Institute of Fibre Materials and Devices, said: “Our fabrication method is highly compatible with the current tools used in the chip industry. We have already achieved a way to mass-produce these fibre chips.”
The study – ‘Fibre integrated circuits by a multilayered spiral architecture’ – have been published in the journal Nature.
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