10.05.17
Imec announced at its Imec Technology Forum (ITF) Health event that is has designed and fabricated a demonstrator of a neural probe with unprecedented electrode density within the framework Neuroseeker, a large-scale EU-project.
Designed and fabricated in silicon chip technology, the probe is suitable for breakthrough bio-interfaces and implants that may shape the future of neuroscience. With hundreds of electrodes capable of contacting and reading out single neurons, this probe incorporates innovations that point the way to a better understanding of the brain, and ultimately will lead to diagnostic and prosthetic tools to tackle human brain diseases.
“Our goal was to fabricate a brain probe that would enable a breakthrough in the level of detail by which micro circuits of the brain cortex and also deep brain structures can be studied,” said Marleen Welkenhuysen, NeuroSeeker project manager at imec. “Previous probes were severely restricted in the number of signals that could be captured simultaneously, which limited their use as a basis for research and therapeutic tools. With this new probe, we demonstrate that it is possible to create powerful electronics that can interface with the brain on the level of small neuronal circuits and even individual neurons.”
Imec’s CMOS-compatible NeuroSeeker high-density neural probe. (Source: Imec)
Designed and fabricated in silicon chip technology, the probe is suitable for breakthrough bio-interfaces and implants that may shape the future of neuroscience. With hundreds of electrodes capable of contacting and reading out single neurons, this probe incorporates innovations that point the way to a better understanding of the brain, and ultimately will lead to diagnostic and prosthetic tools to tackle human brain diseases.
“Our goal was to fabricate a brain probe that would enable a breakthrough in the level of detail by which micro circuits of the brain cortex and also deep brain structures can be studied,” said Marleen Welkenhuysen, NeuroSeeker project manager at imec. “Previous probes were severely restricted in the number of signals that could be captured simultaneously, which limited their use as a basis for research and therapeutic tools. With this new probe, we demonstrate that it is possible to create powerful electronics that can interface with the brain on the level of small neuronal circuits and even individual neurons.”
Imec’s CMOS-compatible NeuroSeeker high-density neural probe. (Source: Imec)
