"Profs. Zhang, Rouabhia, and Moulton have assembled a group of investigators that are working on issues ranging from materials synthesis, device characterization, and analytical measurements of performance. Of particular interest and value are several reports from clinically-inclined investigators that describe recent studies of electrically-mediated cell response. These areas represent opportunities for future developments and collaborations between chemists, materials scientists, biomedical engineers, and physicians. Taken together, these chapters provide a comprehensive overview of issues related to the interface between active devices and biological systems" David C. Martin, Karl W. and Renate Böer Professor of Materials Science & Engineering, University of Delaware (from the Foreword)