Patterned electrical brain stimulation by a wireless network of implantable microdevices
Abstract Transmitting meaningful information into brain circuits by electronic means is a challenge facing brain-computer interfaces. A key goal is to find an approach to inject spatially structured local current stimuli across swaths of sensory areas of the cortex. Here, we introduce a wireless app...
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| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Nature Portfolio
2024-11-01
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| Series: | Nature Communications |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-54542-1 |
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| Summary: | Abstract Transmitting meaningful information into brain circuits by electronic means is a challenge facing brain-computer interfaces. A key goal is to find an approach to inject spatially structured local current stimuli across swaths of sensory areas of the cortex. Here, we introduce a wireless approach to multipoint patterned electrical microstimulation by a spatially distributed epicortically implanted network of silicon microchips to target specific areas of the cortex. Each sub-millimeter-sized microchip harvests energy from an external radio-frequency source and converts this into biphasic current injected focally into tissue by a pair of integrated microwires. The amplitude, period, and repetition rate of injected current from each chip are controlled across the implant network by implementing a pre-scheduled, collision-free bitmap wireless communication protocol featuring sub-millisecond latency. As a proof-of-concept technology demonstration, a network of 30 wireless stimulators was chronically implanted into motor and sensory areas of the cortex in a freely moving rat for three months. We explored the effects of patterned intracortical electrical stimulation on trained animal behavior at average RF powers well below regulatory safety limits. |
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| ISSN: | 2041-1723 |