Chronic, percutaneous connector for electrical recording and stimulation with microelectrode arrays

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Neuroscience
• Materials Science

Background:

• Translating neural stimulation and recording research to clinical practice requires reliable chronic experiments in awake, behaving animal models.
• Flexible polymer microelectrode arrays have improved neural interface reliability, but electrical connector technology remains a bottleneck due to failure from biocompatibility, size, contamination, and corrosion issues.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present a novel chronic, percutaneous electrical connector system designed for neural stimulation and recording applications.
• To address the limitations of existing connector technologies, focusing on biocompatibility, ease of use, and long-term reliability in chronic studies.

Main Methods:

• Design and in vitro assembly of a novel chronic, percutaneous electrical connector system with biocompatible materials, low connect/disconnect forces, passive alignment, and a protective cap.
• Development and testing of both 16-channel and 64-channel high-density connector systems.
• Electrical assembly of custom polyimide microelectrode arrays with the connector system and electrochemical testing using cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy.

Main Results:

• Successful in vitro design, assembly, and testing of both 16-channel and 64-channel versions of the novel connector system.
• Demonstrated compatibility with custom polyimide microelectrode arrays through electrochemical testing.
• The connector system exhibited desirable features including biocompatible materials and low connect/disconnect forces.

Conclusions:

• The developed chronic, percutaneous electrical connector system is a versatile solution for neural stimulation and recording.
• This novel system overcomes key limitations of existing connectors, offering improved reliability for chronic neural interface studies.
• The technology is adaptable for various microelectrode array types, supporting diverse research applications in neuroscience and biomedical engineering.