MEAs allow passive observation, and also active influence and control of neuronal activity. Metal electrodes can deliver electrical stimuli directly using the microelectrodes, whereas for OGFET-based devices, typically an extra capacitive stimulation spot is used to deliver stimuli (Stett et al., 1997). In addition, monolithic CMOS integration of MEAs opens up the possibility to include electrical stimulation circuitry directly on-chip, in turn allowing a high degree of flexibility in generating spatiotemporal patterns of stimulation, higher spatial resolution for stimulation and direct on-chip stimulation artifact blanking or suppression.
