Active pixel sensor array for high spatio-temporal resolution electrophysiological recordings from single cell to large scale neuronal networks

TLDR

The paper introduces a chip‑based electrophysiological platform for studying micro‑ and macro‑circuitry in in‑vitro neuronal preparations. The platform uses a 64×64 CMOS microelectrode array with 21 µm spacing, low‑noise in‑pixel amplifiers (11 µVrms), and high‑speed random‑addressing logic to record extracellular activity at up to 7.8 kHz per electrode with temporal resolution from 0.13 ms to 8 µs. When applied to in‑vitro neuronal cultures, the system successfully records signals from single cells, microcircuits, and large‑scale networks, demonstrating its utility for neuronal activity studies.

Abstract

This paper presents a chip-based electrophysiological platform enabling the study of micro- and macro-circuitry in in-vitro neuronal preparations. The approach is based on a 64 × 64 microelectrode array device providing extracellular electrophysiological activity recordings with high spatial (21 µm of electrode separation) and temporal resolution (from 0.13 ms for 4096 microelectrodes down to 8 µs for 64 microelectrodes). Applied to in-vitro neuronal preparations, we show how this approach enables neuronal signals to be acquired for investigating neuronal activity from single cells and microcircuits to large scale neuronal networks. The main elements of the platform are the metallic microelectrode array (MEA) implemented in Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS) technology similar to a light imager, the in-pixel integrated low-noise amplifiers (11 µVrms) and the high-speed random addressing logic. The chip is combined with a real-time acquisition system providing the capability to record at 7.8 kHz/electrode the whole array and to process the acquired signals.