Reporters learned from the Institute of Semiconductors of the Chinese Academy of Sciences on September 8 that the Institute, together with researchers from other units, has made important progress in the research on the implantation of flexible invasive brain computer interface devices, and has successfully developed a rigid and flexible adjustable "nerve tentacle" probe, reducing the implantation injury by more than 74%. The relevant paper was published online in Advanced Science. In the current rapid development of brain computer interfaces and neuroscience, flexible neural electrodes are considered an ideal technological path for achieving long-term stable neural signal acquisition due to their excellent biocompatibility and good mechanical matching with brain tissue. Compared to traditional rigid electrodes, this soft probe can significantly reduce the physical damage to brain tissue during implantation, effectively suppress post implantation inflammatory reactions, and prolong its stable working time in the body, demonstrating great potential for application. However, due to the material being too soft, flexible neural electrodes are difficult to penetrate dense brain tissue and reach the target area without external rigid support. This thorny implantation problem has become the core bottleneck hindering the practical application of flexible electrodes. ”Pei Weihua, co corresponding author of the paper and researcher of Institute of Semiconductor Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, said. In order to solve the problem of "difficult implantation", researchers have developed a new type of probe called "neural tentacle". This probe contains a tiny hydraulic system that becomes rigid enough to accurately puncture brain tissue during implantation, like inflating a balloon; After implantation, it returns to a soft state and adapts to the brain tissue microenvironment. "This ingenious design has achieved two key goals: one is that it will cause little damage to the brain during implantation, and the other is that it can record high-quality neural signals in a long-term and stable way," said Wang Yang, the co first author of the paper and a doctor from the Institute of Semiconductor Research of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Experimental results have shown that compared with traditional microneedle implantation methods, the "nerve tentacle" probe reduces the damage caused by implantation by more than 74%, and reduces subsequent chronic inflammation by about 40%. In addition, in long-term mouse experiments, the neural signals recorded by this new probe remain clear and stable, and the number and quality of effective neuronal signals captured are stronger than those of ordinary flexible electrodes. (New Society)