Cleaning MEG artifacts using external cues

Using EEG, ECoG, MEG, and microelectrodes to record brain activity is prone to multiple artifacts. The main power line (mains line), video equipment, mechanical vibrations and activities outside the brain are the most common sources of artifacts. MEG amplitudes are low, and even small artifacts distort recordings. In this study, we show how these artifacts can be efficiently removed by recording external cues during MEG recordings. These external cues are subsequently used to register the precise times or spectra of the artifacts. The results indicate that these procedures preserve both the spectra and the time domain wave-shapes of the neuromagnetic signal, while successfully reducing the contribution of the artifacts to the target signals without reducing the rank of the data. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.