A Micromachined SiO₂/Silicon Probe for Neural Signal Recordings

The development of an implantable five channel microelectrode array is presented for neural signal recordings. The detailed fabrication process is outlined with four masks used. The SEM images show that the probe shank is 1.2mm long, 100μm wide and 30μm thick with the recording sites spaced 200μm apart for good signal isolation. The plot of the single recording site impedance versus frequency is shown by test in vitro and the impedance declines with the increasing frequency. Experiment in vivo using this probe is under way.