A highly flexible manufacturing technique for microelectrode array fabrication

Author

Fofonoff, Timothy ; Martel, Sylvain ; Wiseman, Colette ; Dyer, Robert ; Hunter, Ian ; Hatsopoulos, Nicholas ; Donoghue, John

Author_Institution

BioInstrumentation Lab., MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA

Volume

3

fYear

2002

fDate

23-26 Oct. 2002

Firstpage

2107

Abstract

A new technique for manufacturing microelectrode arrays is described and assessed. This technique uses wire Electrical Discharge Machining (wire EDM) to form detailed array structures from a single sample of solid metal. Chemical etching can then be used to increase the electrode aspect ratios. Electrode lengths of 5 mm, widths of 40 μm, and spacings of 250 μm have been fabricated using this technique. Arrays of electrodes of varying lengths can also be fabricated. For intracortical recording applications, the signal paths are isolated from one another by securing an insulating substrate.

Keywords

arrays; bioelectric phenomena; biological techniques; brain; electrical discharge machining; etching; microelectrodes; neurophysiology; 250 micron; 40 micron; 5 mm; chemical etching; electrode aspect ratios; electrode length; highly flexible manufacturing technique; insulating substrate; intracortical recording applications; microelectrode array fabrication; neuroscience method; signal paths; solid metal; Computer aided manufacturing; Electrodes; Etching; Fabrication; Flexible manufacturing systems; Implants; Machining; Microelectrodes; Neuroscience; Wire;

fLanguage

English

Publisher

ieee

Conference_Titel

Engineering in Medicine and Biology, 2002. 24th Annual Conference and the Annual Fall Meeting of the Biomedical Engineering Society EMBS/BMES Conference, 2002. Proceedings of the Second Joint

ISSN

1094-687X

Print_ISBN

0-7803-7612-9

Type

conf

DOI

10.1109/IEMBS.2002.1053191

Filename

1053191