An Ultra High-Frequency 8-Channel Neurostimulator Circuit With $\text{68}\%$ Peak Power Efficiency

Bidirectional Bioelectronic Interfaces: System Design and Circuit Implications

“…It should be noted that high-frequency (> 1 kHz) stimulation can also block action-potential propagation. Though electrical stimulation can be accomplished by means of voltage, current and charge [17,19,20], most stimulators use current sources to build up and remove the charge from the tissue. A generic biphasic, constant-current, stimulation setup is shown in Figure 6.…”

“…The driver circuits of these electrodes, traditionally, are operated from a single high-voltage supply [17,18], degrading the overall power efficiency as not all electrodes develop the same voltage and, as a consequence, a lot of voltage headroom is being wasted. The best power efficiency of multi-channel stimulator circuits, therefore, can be achieved by not driving every electrode from its own (current or voltage) driver circuit, but by using an Ultra High-Frequency (UHF) pulse-based technique that builds up the right amount of charge at every electrode by means of rapid (e.g., 1 micro-second duration) current pulses [19].…”

IC-Based Neuro-Stimulation Environment for Arbitrary Waveform Generation

“…If technological improvements still occur in circuits for conventional stimulation, design challenges are clearly identified. [37], ♯6: [38]).…”

“…A large majority aim to improve energy efficiency, by replacing standard topology with switched mode DC-DC converter architecture. In [38], the authors propose an inductor-based buck-boost DC-DC converter which does not require an external output capacitor. This is made possible by replacing the biphasic waveform with high-frequency pulses.…”

“…(b) FOM evaluation versus tissue safety criterion [32] of current trends in stimulation. (♯1: [33], ♯2: [34], ♯3: [35], ♯4: [36], ♯5:[37], ♯6:[38]).…”