Functional Hydrogels for Wearable Electronics

Abstract Functional‐hydrogel‐based wearable sensors are a rapidly evolving field in the modern era due to their various attractive features. Functional hydrogels have a great ability for multiple applications because of their unusual combination of biocompatibility, flexibility, and responsiveness to different stimuli. Wearable electronics illustrate next‐generation technology, seamlessly incorporating sophisticated features into everyday accessories to provide continuous health monitoring, real‐time data collecting, and improved human–computer interactions. This review provides an extensive summary of the state of functional hydrogels in wearable electronics. The basic ideas behind wearable electronics and hydrogels are first introduced, emphasizing how they work together harmoniously. The different types of hydrogels and synthesis methods of functional hydrogels, including chemical and physical cross‐linking methods, are highlighted. A comprehensive investigation is carried out into the intrinsic properties of hydrogels, including their conductivity, mechanical strength, and stimuli‐responsiveness. Subsequently, various applications of functional hydrogels are explored in wearable electronics, emphasizing motion sensors, electrophysiological sensors, respiratory gas sensors, body fluid biomarker sensors, and wound healing monitoring. Recent developments and valuable applications are used to show how these materials can revolutionize the design of wearable technology. This review is valuable for researchers traversing the interdisciplinary fields of polymer, bioelectronics, and chemistry.