Dissertation
Braided multi-electrode probes for neural interfaces
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Drexel University
May 2013
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17918/etd-4187
Abstract
Although clinical use of invasive neural interfaces is very limited, due to safety and reliability concerns, the potential benefits of their use in brain machine interfaces (BMIs) seem promising and so they have been widely used in the research field. Microelectrodes as invasive neural interfaces are the core tool to record neural activities and their failure is a critical issue for BMI systems. Possible sources of this failure are neural tissue motions and their interactions with stiff electrode arrays or probes fixed to the skull. To overcome these tissue motion problems, we have developed novel braided multi-electrode probes (BMEPs). By interweaving ultra-fine wires into a tubular braid structure, we obtained a highly flexible multi-electrode probe. In this thesis we described BMEP designs and how to fabricate BMEPs, and explore experiments to show the advantages of BMEPs through a mechanical compliance comparison and a chronic immunohistological comparison with single 50[mu]m nichrome wires used as a reference electrode type. Results from the mechanical compliance test showed that the bodies of BMEPs have 4 to 21 times higher compliance than the single 50[mu]m wire and the tethers of BMEPs were 6 to 96 times higher compliance, depending on combinations of the wire size (9.6[mu]m or 12.7[mu]m), the wire numbers (12 or 24), and the length of tether (3, 5 or 10 mm). Results from the immunohistological comparison showed that both BMEPs and 50[mu]m wires anchored to the skull caused stronger tissue reactions than unanchored BMEPs and 50[mu]m wires, and 50[mu]m wires caused stronger tissue reactions than BMEPs. In in-vivo tests with BMEPs, we succeeded in chronic recordings from the spinal cord of freely jumping frogs and in acute recordings from the spinal cord of decerebrate rats during air stepping which was evoked by mesencephalic locomotor region (MLR) stimulation. This technology may provide a stable and reliable neural interface to spinal cord researches with freely moving animals as well as to BMI researches. In addition this is extensible to various applications.
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Details
- Title
- Braided multi-electrode probes for neural interfaces
- Creators
- Taegyo Kim - DU
- Contributors
- Simon F. Giszter (Advisor) - Drexel University (1970-)
- Awarding Institution
- Drexel University
- Degree Awarded
- Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
- Publisher
- Drexel University; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Resource Type
- Dissertation
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- School of Biomedical Engineering, Science, and Health Systems (1997-2026); Drexel University
- Other Identifier
- 4187; 991014632259404721