Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute researchers are developing a tiny heat spreader to be used in a new device to be implanted in the brain of patients who suffer from severe epileptic seizures. The device will detect and stop epileptic seizures by cooling a small region of the brain, thereby effectively blocking the erratic electrical activity.

“The heat spreader we created for this implant device acts as a very efficient thermal conductor, spreading and releasing the heat without minimal temperature increase, thereby preventing any potential tissue damage to the brain,” said G. P. “Bud” Peterson.

Implanted on the neocortex of the brain, the implant device cools a small area of the brain from approximately 38°C (100°F) to 20°C (68°F) as soon as a seizure is detected.

It works as a very small “thermoelectric refrigerator” made of many tiny metal semiconductor junctions connected between two ceramic electrodes to create an electronic circuit. One side of the implant is cooled and the other is heated as electrical current moves through it. The heat spreader allows the heat generated and absorbed by the implant device to be released without a significant increase in temperature.

The implant device has been tested on rats and approved by the National Institutes of Health for testing in primates.

Via Eurekalert. Press Release.