Traditional analog front-ends for biomedical signal acquisitions operate at very low frequencies (Hz-range) and are severely affected by flicker and environmental noise, which degrade the quality of low-frequency signals, thereby reducing the signal-to-noise ratio. While offering advantages, the increasingly common use of microelectrodes poses challenges due to their low-frequency high impedance, which is comparable to the one of the front-end, thus creating additional difficulties in signal acquisition. To tackle the challenges of in-vitro low-frequency biosignal acquisition, this paper proposes a novel methodology based on the upconversion of low-frequency biosignals to a higher frequency band by a Schottky diode immersed in a solution. This work aims to demonstrate the feasibility of the new sensory method by translating in frequency the information of a sinewave stimulus representing a biological signal. Experimental results showed a conversion loss of 11.11 dB and demonstrated the upconverted signal propagation in the solution, measuring an intermodulation power above the noise floor, from −87.04 dBm to −104.13 dBm. The proposed method provides a better signal-to-noise ratio than the traditional acquisition method, estimating an improvement of 8.99 dB.
New Sensory Method for Neural Activity by Frequency Upconversion with Non-Linear Element / Bontempi, Andrea; Meimandi, Ali; Luca Barbruni, Gian; Crovetti, PAOLO STEFANO; Demarchi, Danilo; Carrara, Sandro; MOTTO ROS, Paolo. - In: IEEE SENSORS LETTERS. - ISSN 2475-1472. - (2024), pp. 1-4. [10.1109/LSENS.2024.3430493]
New Sensory Method for Neural Activity by Frequency Upconversion with Non-Linear Element
Andrea Bontempi;Paolo Stefano Crovetti;Danilo Demarchi;Paolo Motto Ros
2024
Abstract
Traditional analog front-ends for biomedical signal acquisitions operate at very low frequencies (Hz-range) and are severely affected by flicker and environmental noise, which degrade the quality of low-frequency signals, thereby reducing the signal-to-noise ratio. While offering advantages, the increasingly common use of microelectrodes poses challenges due to their low-frequency high impedance, which is comparable to the one of the front-end, thus creating additional difficulties in signal acquisition. To tackle the challenges of in-vitro low-frequency biosignal acquisition, this paper proposes a novel methodology based on the upconversion of low-frequency biosignals to a higher frequency band by a Schottky diode immersed in a solution. This work aims to demonstrate the feasibility of the new sensory method by translating in frequency the information of a sinewave stimulus representing a biological signal. Experimental results showed a conversion loss of 11.11 dB and demonstrated the upconverted signal propagation in the solution, measuring an intermodulation power above the noise floor, from −87.04 dBm to −104.13 dBm. The proposed method provides a better signal-to-noise ratio than the traditional acquisition method, estimating an improvement of 8.99 dB.Pubblicazioni consigliate
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https://hdl.handle.net/11583/2991109
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