MicroSensors and MicroActuators Georgia Tech MEMS group
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MICROCABLE AND MICROWEB ELASTOMER ELECTRODES FOR ELECTROPHYSIOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS Maxine McClain, Michelle LaPlaca (Associate Professor, BME), Mark G. Allen – Introduction – Conventional neuroelectrodes have a bulk conductive metal core that makes them much stiffer than the tissue from which they record or stimulate. The difference in mechanical properties causes chronic microtrauama and presents difficulties for conformal contact with irregular features. – Objective – Electrodes made from silicone rubber and a nanometer scale gold film, presented here, have a mechanical compliance closer to soft tissue than that of traditional microwire electrodes or polyimide electrodes. The geometries chosen were sinusoidal and straight microcables that can be incorporated to create a shank array or web-like arrangement of microelectrodes. An example of a microelectrode array is shown in figures 1 and 2. The array is shown on a glass slide in its native conformation (Fig 1), and free-floating in a water bath (Fig 2), to show the compliance of the features. The insulating layer is silicone (~30 mm), and the electrical lead is gold (50nm). Specific regions of the top insulating layer of the cables can also be patterned to create exposed sites along the length of the lead for either recording or stimulation. – Figures – – Selected Publication – McClain MA, LaPlaca MC, Allen MG “Spun-cast micromolding for etchless micropatterning of electrically functional PDMS structures” Journal of Micromechanics and Microengineering. 2009, 19(10): 107002. (PDF)
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