Magnetic Patch for Activating Single Neurons
“In this work, we [University of Minnesota] report the design and fabrication of planar μcoil arrays, termed Magnetic Patch (MagPatch), for activating single neurons. Using numerical calculations on ANSYS-Maxwell and NEURON, we report an optimized MagPatch array design that exploits the directionality of the induced electric field from the μcoils to enhance spatial selectivity. Each μcoil has an outer dimension of 190 × 190 μm2 and one MagPatch array contains 8 μcoils. . . . . Human neuroblastoma cells were cultured directly on the surface encapsulated MagPatch, and calcium fluorescence imaging was used to assess cell functionality. The impact of scaling the dimensions of the μcoil in the MagPatch array on electrical characteristics, Q-factor, and thermal effects on neural tissues from these μcoils have also been discussed.” MORE
Image Credit: EurekaAlert