Chinese research team develops a head-mounted microscope, which only weighs 1.7 gram, for neurovascular imaging that enables the simultaneous imaging of neural and hemodynamic activities at high spatiotemporal resolution in freely behaving mice. Photo: Screenshot of media reports

Chinese research team recently developed a head-mounted microscope, which only weighs 1.7 gram, for neurovascular imaging that enables the simultaneous imaging of neural and hemodynamic activities at high spatiotemporal resolution in freely behaving mice, offering new tools for studying neurovascular coupling and advancing brain-computer interface technology, Science and Technology Daily reported on Monday.

The 1.7-gram lightweight microscope integrates confocal fluorescence and photoacoustic microscopy, allowing recordings at 0.78 hertz with 1.5-micrometer lateral resolution across a field of view of 400 micrometers by 400 micrometers, according to the research published by Science Advances.

Next, the team will continue to optimize the performance of the head-mounted microscope in imaging technology, further expanding the imaging field of view and exploring the integration of other modalities.

For brain-machine interface applications, the researchers aim to apply the technology to non-invasive brain function monitoring in primates. 

Global Times-Science and Technology Daily