Rapid curing, electrically conductive adhesive

An improved method of in situ polymerization of an adhesive, conformable, electrically conductive hydrogen for use in a biomedical electrode, comprising a disc having a first surface and a second, skin-directed surface, the first surface of said disc being associated with means for electrically connecting said disc to a lead wire and said second, skin-directed surface being associated with a conformable, adhesive, ionic, polymeric conductive hydrogel, said hydrogen enhancing the electrical connection with the skin, said method comprising:

• forming said conductive material on said electrode by the steps of:
• assembling a precursor of said conductive material comprising:
• an aqueous mixture of an N-vinyl lactam monomer, an acrylic monomer, a water-soluble cross-linking agent, a photoinitiator and an ionizable salt, wherein the ratio of N-vinyl lactam to acrylic monomer is between about 1:10 to 10:1 and wherein the amount of water comprises at least about 50 percent by weight of said mixture,
• placing said precursor in a well defined by a UV translucent abhesive material,
• placing the skin-directed surface of said disc in contact with the precursor, and
• polymerizing said precursor by exposing said precursor to UV light for less than 30 seconds, thereby forming an electrically conductive, pressure-sensitive adhesive hydrogel in contact with said disc to produce said electrode.