A High-Resolution Opto-Electrophysiology System With a Miniature Integrated Headstage.

Abstract

This work presents a fully integrated neural interface system in a small form factor (1.9 g), consisting of aμLED silicon optoelectrode (12μLEDs and 32 recording sites in a 4-shank configuration), an Intan 32-channel recording chip, and a custom optical stimulation chip for controlling 12μLEDs. High-resolution optical stimulation with approximately 68.5 nW radiant flux resolution is achieved by a custom LED driver ASIC, which enables individual control of up to 48 channels with a current precision of 1μA, a maximum current of 1.024 mA, and an update rate of >10kHz. Recording is performed by an off-the-shelf 32-channel digitizing front-end ASIC from Intan. Two compact custom interface printed circuit boards were designed to link the headstage with a PC. The prototype system demonstrates precise current generation, sufficient optical radiant flux generation , and fast turn-on ofμLEDs . Single animal in vivo experiments validated the headstage's capability to precisely modulate single neuronal activity and independently modulate activities of separate neuronal populations near neighboring optoelectrode shanks.