Modelling of Stimulation Environment Using Monophasic Rectangle Pulse for Various Stimulation Parameters |
| M.E. Celik and I. Karagoz
Gazi University, Department of Electrical-Electronics Engineering, Ankara, Turkey |
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| Recently, both the progress in some technological fields and multidisciplinary studies conducted with collaboration from different branches of science have impressive effect on clinically tested systems. Studies on development of visual prosthesis, which is based on passing damaged parts of the visual pathway and electrically stimulating nerve cells remaining intact, date back to elicit visual sense in blind patients. Investigation of some research topics, in silico, which should be taken into consideration in the design phase before expensive animal experiments provides great advantages in terms of both financial and time issues. In this study, factors such as heat, electric field distribution for current thresholds, current density which should be discussed in the design phase are simulated using monophasic rectangle pulses depending on various stimulation parameters with developed computational retina model. Change of heat, electric field, current density in points selected from center and periphery of retina tissue are investigated for various stimulation parameters. As a result, it is concluded that distribution of heat and electric field intensity over the periphery retina are much less than center region. Moreover, when larger pulse width is used, change of heat and electric field intensity seems much more in regions from center retina near stimulation electrode. Current density is higher in the sharp ends of the electrode than flat regions. Besides, when the size of stimulation electrode increases, electric field distribution becomes more uniform. |
DOI: 10.12693/APhysPolA.128.B-297 PACS numbers: 87.85.Tu, 87.85.-d |