Applied Physical Sciences, Research Talk: Dr. Nico Pegard, UNC Chapel Hill

Bridging Brains and Machines with Optical Neurotechnology

Reverse-engineering the brain in health and disease requires advanced technologies that can interact with brain functions in highly constrained experimental environments. To tackle these challenges, our laboratory brings together neuroscientists, optical engineers, and computer scientists to design custom instruments and enable previously infeasible experiments that can propel discovery in neuroscience.

In this presentation, we will first discuss our recent progress in Computer Generated Holography. Our team has developed a new technique to synthesize holograms at record speeds while accounting for the biological response of neurons being illuminated, using deep learning models. The result is a powerful technology that can be optimized to best achieve the desired brain interfacing task, and optically manipulate large neural circuits at physiologically relevant speeds.

We will then discuss our latest work on Biometric Ocular Photometry, a new optical method to measure several biometric indicators of arousal with a single, miniature, inexpensive device. We will show how our technology is already helping neuroscientists reverse engineer the neurocircuitry of arousal, and how our results are paving the way for future human devices that will help diagnose and treat neuropsychiatric disorders.