High Power Ultrafast Fiber Laser

The purpose of this acquisition is to procure a high power ultrafast fiber laser to be integrated with existing microscope and used with custom software developed to control this laser. The UNCB studies the function of cortical network activity in vivo using single-cell optogenetic stimulation. A single stimulus or motor action changes the activity of many cells in the cerebral cortex, and it is thought that patterns of activity across many cells are the fundamental unit of cortical function. However, we have been unable to understand how the brain uses activity patterns across multiple cells, principally because, as a field, we have been unable to change the activity of multiple individual cells in a patterned way. Two-photon optogenetic stimulation can provide such control, and thus has enormous promise to reveal how the brain works. Several groups worldwide, including our group, are working to deploy this approach in behaving animals. To do this, we develop custom optical microscopes which are able to both image and stimulate neurons using high-pulse power lasers. Currently, the UNCB is greatly hindered in pursuing its mandated mission and is in critical need of a customizable High power ultrafast fiber laser to fulfill its role within NIMH.