The mentioned chip is being fed through the "battery" which is located in the cochlea. It takes a small amount of high voltage current that is created from an imbalance of potassium and sodium ions on opposite sides of the membrane when the eardrum vibrates. Although the voltage is very low, it's actually the highest (extracellular) voltage in the body. It is essential that the chip consumes the smallest amount of power possible, because otherwise could impede or prevent normal hearing. The guinea pig experiments have concluded that the guinea pig still had normal hearing after the experiment.

This chip was developed by MIT's Department of Microsystems Technology Laboratories (MTL) and it wirelessly transmitted data on the chemical state of the ear that are being read by a separate external receiver. This technology opens the door to monitor biological activity in the ears of people who have hearing problems. Cliff Megerian, chairman of otolaryngology at Case Western Reserve University and University Hospitals Case Medical Center said “I’m not ready to say that the present iteration of this technology is ready. If we could tap into the natural power source of the cochlea, it could potentially be a driver behind the amplification technology of the future.”

Tell us what you think about this technology in our Forum