Wireless multichannel biopotential recording using an integrated FM telemetry circuit

Abstract

This paper presents a four-channel telemetric microsystem featuring on-chip alternating current amplification, direct current baseline stabilization, clock generation, time-division multiplexing, and wireless frequency-modulation transmission of microvolt- and millivolt-range input biopotentials in the very high frequency band of 94-98 MHz over a distance of /spl sim/0.5 m. It consists of a 4.84-mm/sup 2/ integrated circuit, fabricated using a 1.5-/spl mu/m double-poly double-metal n-well standard complementary metal-oxide semiconductor process, interfaced with only three off-chip components on a custom-designed printed-circuit board that measures 1.7/spl times/1.2/spl times/0.16 cm/sup 3/, and weighs 1.1 g including two miniature 1.5-V batteries. We characterize the microsystem performance, operating in a truly wireless fashion in single-channel and multichannel operation modes, via extensive benchtop and in vitro tests in saline utilizing two different micromachined neural recording microelectrodes, while dissipating /spl sim/2.2 mW from a 3-V power supply. Moreover, we demonstrate successful wireless in vivo recording of spontaneous neural activity at 96.2 MHz from the auditory cortex of an awake marmoset monkey at several transmission distances ranging from 10 to 50 cm with signal-to-noise ratios in the range of 8.4-9.5 dB.