Many medical procedures to the treat neurological diseases involve the implantation of electrodes for recording neural activity and/or electrical stimulation. Current electrode technology is limited by poor long-term biocompatibility that elicits an inflammatory response, thereby degrading electrical reliability. This limitation forces patients to undergo unnecessary medical procedures for re-implantation, which increases treatment costs and causes additional risks to patient health. A University of Colorado research group led by Diego Restrepo has developed a unique electrode technology that uses shape-memory polymers (SMPs) with biodegradable properties to encapsulate gold-wire conductors as electrodes for long-term recording and stimulation in different tissues in the body. These electrodes would be capable of deployment at slow rates (minutes to days) post-implantation, minimizing adverse tissue reactivity and improving long-term signal strength.