KAIST professor Keon Jae Lee and Yonsei University professor Boyoung Joung have developed a self-powered artificial cardiac pacemaker operated semi-permanently by a flexible piezoelectric nanogenerator.

The flexible piezoelectric nanogenerator directly stimulated a living rat’s heart using electrical energy converted from body movements. This could facilitate the use of self-powered flexible energy harvesters, prolonging the life of cardiac pacemakers and enabling real-time heart monitoring.