Development of an all-SiC neuronal interface device
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Development of an all-SiC neuronal interface device Evans Bernardin1, Christopher L. Frewin2, Abhishek Dey1, Richard Everly3, Jawad Ul Hassan4, Erik Janzén4, Joe Pancrazio2 and Stephen E. Saddow1 1
Department of Electrical Engineering, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33612, U.S.A. Department of Bioengineering, University of Texas at Dallas, Dallas, TX 75080, U.S.A 3 Nanotechnology Research and Education Center @ U.S.F., Tampa, FL 33617, U.S.A. 4 Department of Physics, Chemistry and Biology (IFM), Linköping University, SE-581 83 Linköping, Sweden 2
ABSTRACT The intracortical neural interface (INI) is a key component of brain machine interfaces (BMI) which offer the possibility to restore functions lost by patients due to severe trauma to the central or peripheral nervous system. Unfortunately today’s neural electrodes suffer from a variety of design flaws, mainly the use of non-biocompatible materials based on Si or W with polymer coatings to mask the underlying material. Silicon carbide (SiC) is a semiconductor that has been proven to be highly biocompatible, and this chemically inert, physically robust material system may provide the longevity and reliability needed for the INI community. The design, fabrication, and preliminary testing of a prototype all-SiC planar microelectrode array based on 4H-SiC with an amorphous silicon carbide (a-SiC) insulator is described. The fabrication of the planar microelectrode was performed utilizing a series of conventional micromachining steps. Preliminary data is presented which shows a proof of concept for an all-SiC microelectrode device. INTRODUCTION Brain machine interfaces (BMI) are defined as a direct communication between the brain and external computerized devices. BMIs that rely on the increased information potential and speed provided by the intracortical neural interface (INI) have shown promise in providing therapies to those suffering from these injuries [1]. However, with the exception of large macrostimulator devices, like Vagus nerve and deep brain stimulation, these devices have a major underlying issue preventing their eventual widespread clinical use. Contemporary devices have displayed questionable long-term reliability which manifests itself initially as signal degradation and ends in complete functional loss over time [2]. One issue which has been pushed to the forefront for INI reliability is the issue of the materials used to fabricate these neural biomedical devices. INI devices have been fabricated using multiple materials, including conductors like tungsten, silicon, titanium nitride, platinum and PEDOT, to insulators like parylene C and polyimide [3]. It has been shown that the physical robustness, chemical resistivity, and interaction between materials and their surroundings often lead to an adverse effect on the biotic response, which may add to the impediment device performance [2, 4, 5]. For example the gold standard insulation for INI is parylene-C; however, it has recently been reported that parylene-C presents a significant reliabilit
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