Your clothes could one day monitor your fitness levels or boost your smartphone reception thanks to a new technique that uses ultrathin electronic thread to embroider circuits into fabric.

Measuring just 0.1 mm in diameter, the thread comprises seven filaments made of copper and silver. Using it, researchers at Ohio State University have found a way to embroider circuits into fabric with enough precision to integrate electronic components such as sensors and memory devices into clothing. 

Ultimately, such “e-textiles” could be used to create shirts that act as antennas, bandages that tell your doctor how well a wound is healing, or even caps that sense activity in the brain.

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