S-MRUT: Sectored-Multiring Ultrasonic Transducer for Selective Powering of Brain Implants

One of the main challenges of the current ultrasonic transducers for powering brain implants is the complexity of focusing ultrasonic waves in various axial and lateral directions. The available transducers usually use electrically controlled phased array for beamforming the ultrasonic waves, which increases the complexity of the system even further. In this article, we propose a straightforward solution for selective powering of brain implants to remove the complexity of conventional phased arrays. Our approach features a Sectored-Multiring Ultrasonic Transducer (S-MRUT) on a single piezoelectric sheet, specifically designed for powering implantable devices for optogenetics in freely moving animals. The proposed unidirectional S-MRUT is capable of focusing the ultrasonic waves on brain implants located at different depths and regions of the brain. The S-MRUT is designed based on Fresnel Zone Plate (FZP) theory, simulated in COMSOL, and fabricated with the microfabrication process. The acoustic profile of the seven different configurations of the S-MRUT was measured using a hydrophonewith the total number of 7436 grid points. The measurements show the ability of the proposed S-MRUT to sweep the focus point of the acoustic waves in the axial direction in depths of 1 - 3 mm, which is suitable for powering implants in the striatum of themouse. Furthermore, the proposed S-MRUT demonstrates a steering areawith an average radius of 0.862mmand 0.678mmin experiments and simulations, respectively. The S-MRUT is designed with the size of 3.8x3.8x0.5 mm(3) and the weight of 0.054gr, showing that it is compact and light enough to be worn by a mouse. Finally, the S- MRUT was tested in our measurement setup, where it successfully transfers sufficient power to a 2.8-mm(3) optogentic stimulator to turn on a micro-LED on the stimulator.

Automated summary

The study introduces a Sectored-Multiring Ultrasonic Transducer (S-MRUT) as a straightforward solution for selectively powering brain implants, avoiding the complexity of conventional phased arrays.