NeuroNexus · neuronexus.com · Glossary
Silicon Carbide (a-SiC) Dielectric
Silicon carbide dielectric is the amorphous silicon carbide (a-SiC) thin film that NeuroNexus deposits as the dielectric (insulating) layers of its silicon probes: beneath the traces to isolate them from the substrate, and over the traces to isolate them from tissue, opened only at the electrode sites and bond pads.
NeuroNexus uses a proprietary low-stress a-SiC for electrical isolation and chemical stability in tissue, including long-term chronic use. The performance of a-SiC as an implantable dielectric is well documented: Cogan and colleagues evaluated plasma-deposited silicon carbide as an implantable coating and reported excellent insulation and stability under physiological conditions (Cogan et al. (2003)), and Deku and colleagues built a-SiC ultramicroelectrode arrays for neural stimulation and recording (Deku et al. (2018)).
The layer is deposited and patterned in the same thin-film microfabrication sequence as the rest of the device, so every silicon probe design carries it. Its place among the material choices of the platform, with the substrate, the metal interconnects, and the electrode sites, is explained in NeuroNexus Probe Technology: Questions and Answers.
Typical values
| Material | amorphous silicon carbide (a-SiC), low-stress thin film |
|---|---|
| Role | dielectric (insulating) layers of the silicon probe |
| Property | electrical isolation and chemical stability in tissue, including long-term chronic use |
References
Related Terms
Cite this term
NeuroNexus. "Silicon Carbide (a-SiC) Dielectric." NeuroNexus Glossary, updated 2026-10-27. https://www.neuronexus.com/resources/glossary/silicon-carbide-insulation