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Updated: Jun 25, 2026
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Mapping Inhibitory Neuronal Circuits by Laser Scanning Photostimulation
Published on: October 6, 2011
Wireless activation of neurons in brain slices using nanostructured semiconductor photoelectrodes
Yixin Zhao1, Philip Larimer, Richard T Pressler
1Center for Chemical Dynamics and Nanomaterials Research, Department of Chemistry, Case Western Reserve University, 10900 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44106, USA.
Angewandte Chemie (International Ed. in English)
|February 17, 2009
Abstract:
Light rather than electrical current: The inner or outer surfaces of glass micropipettes can be coated with nanoparticles of a narrow-band-gap semiconductor. When visible or near-infrared light is used for excitation, these micropipettes (labeled PE Stim in the image) can activate nearby neurons (labeled *) in brain tissue without the damage associated with electrical stimulation.
