A neuron emulator for single-electrode settings
This paper describes the development of an electronic neuron emulator that has both passive and active electrical properties of a neuron as seen from a single electrode. The main utility of this device is for testing electrophysiological equipment such as a single-electrode voltage clamp or a patch-clamp amplifier. Each spike of the action potential is generated by a limited amount of charge stored on a capacitor. This design results in a more realistic simulation of the action potential generation by ionic currents in a live neuron compared to using a current or voltage source. An embedded microprocessor is used to control the firing of the action potential. Preliminary results from a prototype show that the neuron emulator meets the design specifications and is capable of performing rate responsive current clamp.