The rapid evolution of micro-nanoelectronics has led to unprecedented
opportunities to implement ultra-miniaturized electronic systems and
directly interface them with biological systems. Thanks to the huge
possibilities in terms of design space, nanoscale microelectronic circuits
can allow the implementation of incredibly compact electronic systems with
very complex functionalities, including sensing, actuating, processing, and
communicating, which could be potentially employed in countless new
opportunities to realize “smart” (i.e. able to perform complex
functions) human–machine interfaces in both directions, from human to
machine (including also humanoid robots) and vice versa, and so closing the
information loop in order to allow bidirectional interactions. However, the
encumbrance of the contact-based interfaces could greatly limit the
exploitation of the emerging plethora of potential opportunities to build
smart human–machine interfaces. To overcome these limitations, there
is growing interest in autonomous electronic systems that, in general, could
be expected to be contactless, self- or remotely powered,
ultra-miniaturized, non- or minimally invasive with negligible side effects,
biocompatible, eco-friendly (i.e. green), low-cost, and so on, that we could
refer to as zero-power [1] and more generally as
zero-impact electronic systems, sometimes also referred
to as “smart dust” [2]. These future and emerging technologies
are an extremely active macro-area of research [3] that, in spite of
enormous recent progress, is still at the early stage. In this general
context of grand challenges, the current silicon-based microelectronic
technologies can provide a huge range of opportunities for delivering
potential solutions that could respond, at least in part, to the wishful
thinking for the most effective solutions of the future.