Selective activation of cortex using bent micro-wires to magnetically stimulate neurons

Abstract

Disclosed are micro-wire stimulators that magnetically stimulate nearby cells and/or their processes (e.g., nerve fiber, axons, dendrites, etc.). The micro-wire includes one or more bends. The micro-wire stimulator can facilitate the creation of stronger field gradients in one direction with much smaller gradients in orthogonal directions, allowing for selective targeting, or avoiding, of specific cell types within a targeted region. The bent micro-wire stimulator may be implanted into the cortex of the brain to selectively stimulate nearby neural cells having a particular orientation relative to the stimulator. A tip portion of the micro-wire may be rounded, or it may have corners forming other suitable geometric shapes.

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