Understanding the brain in its entity is the big question that fuels neuroscientists and initiatives. Two-photon photo-stimulation or photo-inhibition of neurons via light-sensitive actuators is a very exciting technique at the forefront of neuroscience.
The purpose is to initiate or suppress action potentials from a single neuron or a specific population of neurons using burst of intense femtosecond pulses. This promises to unveil how the brain function at the most precise level and understand, for example, processes in play in neurodegenerative diseases.
Peak intensity of the delivered optical pulses is essential to obtain a reliable photo-stimulation of the photoactive proteins. Our industrial ultrafast fiber laser Satsuma is the work horse of 2P-optogenetics in combination with holographic or AOD microscopes. It delivers enough peak intensity to simultaneously photo-activate hundreds to thousands of neurons. Its extended repetition rate tuning range from single shot to 40 MHz, allows neuroscientists to optimize the experimental photoactivation conditions below the ablation threshold and thermal induced damages : a must have for in vivo studies. SATSUMA features a build in fast ON/OFF switch and attenuation device for optimal ease of use and integration into microscope software.
Other wavelengths can be achieved by combining SATSUMA with MANGO tunable optical parametric amplifier to further optimized the photoactivation efficiency for off centered proteins.
