CIBR umbrella-type stretchable electrode array (USEs probe)
- Record ID
- BTSD-ACAD-0097
- Reviewed
- 2026-10-09
- Interface
- intracortical
- Evidence stage
- preclinical
Independent, source-linked catalog sheet. Not a manufacturer-issued datasheet, regulatory decision or instructions for clinical use. Human evidence does not establish approval. Source-specific restrictions, conflicts and missing specifications are retained below.
CIBR umbrella-type stretchable electrode array (USEs probe)
A high-density penetrating array whose recording filaments are stretchable, so the electrode can follow brain micromotion, and whose filaments all join one central electrode that anchors the array. It was built by Gao Lei’s lab at the Chinese Institute for Brain Research, Beijing (CIBR; also affiliated with the Beijing Institute for Brain Research, CAMS and PUMC). Published 27 August 2026 in Nature Communications (open access, CC BY-NC-ND), DOI 10.1038/s41467-026-77145-4, PMC13620120. The full text was read via Europe PMC. Beijing Municipal Commission of Science and Technology carried CIBR’s Chinese release on 3 September 2026.
Identity
| Field | Value and source scope |
|---|---|
| Device | Umbrella-type stretchable electrode arrays, called the USEs probe [1][2] |
| Origin | CIBR Beijing, Gao Lei laboratory; first authors Bai Jin, Li Jie, Yang Chen, Lv Weipeng [1] |
| Interface class | Intracortical, multi-filament penetrating array [1] |
| Species studied | C57BL/6J and Thy1-YFP mice, head-fixed and freely moving; IACUC protocols CIBR-IACUC-057 and CIBR-IACUC-187 [1] |
| Regulatory status | Research device; no human use reported [1] |
Geometry and architecture
| Field | Value and source scope |
|---|---|
| Channel count | 120-channel and 240-channel versions [1][2] |
| Layout | Eight electrode filaments around a circular recording zone about 5 mm in diameter, each filament with a stretchable serpentine part and a straight part with the recording sites; all filament ends join a central reference electrode 210 µm in diameter that doubles as the implantation anchor [1] |
| Site spacing | 50 µm (120-channel) and 30 µm (240-channel) [1] |
| Site span per filament | 600 µm (120-channel) and 750 µm (240-channel) [1] |
| Filament width | 38 µm (120-channel) and 70 µm (240-channel); thinnest wire about 2 µm [1] |
| Total thickness | About 3 µm [1] |
| Connecting zone | About 11 mm for rodent use; 3D-printed shell, total weight about 1.7 g [1] |
| Site dimensions |
Materials and fabrication
| Field | Value and source scope |
|---|---|
| Stack | Three polyimide layers (about 1.6, 0.8 and 0.8 µm) and two Cr/Au conducting layers (10 nm / 100 nm) [1] |
| Process | 4-inch silicon wafer; 100 nm aluminum sacrificial layer; polyimide spin-coat, vacuum bake at 200 C; LOR 3A/S1813 lift-off for each Cr/Au layer; AZ4620 mask with O2 reactive ion etch to cut the umbrella shape; Cr 10 nm / Au 200 nm I/O pads; about 2 µm SU-8 to reinforce filament-to-anchor junctions; flip-chip bonding to a flexible printed circuit with anisotropic conductive film; release by etching aluminum in 1 mol/L FeCl3 [1] |
| Wafer yield | Ten 120-channel or six 240-channel devices per wafer [1] |
| Site coating | Platinum or PEDOT:PSS electrodeposited; effective-channel impedance 50 to 60 kΩ at 1 kHz [1] |
| Handling | Polyvinyl alcohol protective coat, dissolved after placement [1] |
Implantation
All filaments are carried in one pass on a rigid 190 µm shuttle (an optical fibre in the paper) pushed through the central electrode. A calcium-alginate hydrogel film (0.3 to 0.5 mm thick) is placed on the brain surface to reduce friction during insertion. After implantation the filaments open into a cylinder-like structure in tissue [1][2].
Performance envelope
| Field | Value and source scope |
|---|---|
| Longest tracking | Same neuronal ensembles tracked in a head-fixed mouse for 80 weeks (about 1.5 years) [1] |
| Example mouse | 73 isolated units at 12 weeks; 19.2% (14/73) of units in 23.3% (14/60) of channels stably recorded from 12 to 80 weeks [1] |
| Yield over time | 47 ± 4 channels with spikes and 0.61 ± 0.08 units per channel; average spike amplitude above 100 µV and SNR above 10 from 12 to 80 weeks [1] |
| Single units | Two units on one channel detected from 32 to 80 weeks (waveform correlation above 0.93) [1] |
| Visual cortex | Orientation-selective neuronal populations recorded consistently over 20 weeks [1] |
Limits
Mouse only. The paper itself states that stable tracking declines as the span lengthens, and the 80-week result is for one mouse. Tissue-response figures beyond the paper’s immunohistochemistry were not extracted here.
References
- Bai J et al., Umbrella-type stretchable electrode arrays for long-term neural recording, Nature Communications 17, 10290 (2026), PMC13620120, DOI 10.1038/s41467-026-77145-4.
- Beijing Municipal Commission of Science and Technology (Chinese), reposting CIBR, 北京脑所郜磊团队报道伞状可拉伸电极及年尺度神经记录, 3 September 2026.