A lightweight feedback-controlled microdrive for chronic neural recordings

Abstract

Objective. Chronic neural recordings have provided many insights into the relationship between neural activity and behavior. We set out to develop a miniaturized motorized microdrive that allows precise electrode positioning despite possibly unreliable motors. Approach. We designed a feedback-based motor control mechanism. It contains an integrated position readout from an array of magnets and a Hall sensor. Main results. Our extremely lightweight (<1 g) motorized microdrive allows remote positioning of both metal electrodes and glass pipettes along one motorized axis. Target locations can be defined with a range of 6 mm and they can be reached within 1 µm precision. The incorporated headstage electronics are capable of both extracellular and intracellular recordings. We include a simple mechanism for repositioning electrodes in three dimensions and for replacing them during operation. We present neural data from different premotor areas of adult and juvenile zebra finches. Significance. Our findings show that feedback-based microdrive control requires little extra size and weight, suggesting that such control can be incorporated into more complex multi-electrode designs.