URL: zifangzhao.info

Department of Electrical Engineering, Columbia University

500W 120th street Mudd 1324, New York, NY, 10025

[email protected]

I’m a post-doc scientist work in the interdisciplinary field of Neuroscience/Electric Engineering. In my line of work, I’m focusing on developing neural interface technologies and translate those technology to advance neuroscience researches.

My past works have been focused on developing electrophysiology-related technologies for neural disorders like epilepsy and pathologic pain. Those work including algorithm development for neural data(Z.-F. Zhao, Li, and Wan 2017), recording technology development facilitates the study of pain(Ma et al. 2019; Li et al. 2017), and the clinical translation of those technology(Khodagholy et al. 2016). In our recent work (Z. Zhao et al. 2021), we have demonstrated an implantable closed-loop neural interface system with a novel multiplex-then-amplify (MTA) structure. In short, MTA structure provides a high channel-count, low power-consumption bidirectional neural interface. We have developed an implantable wireless closed-loop neural interface based on this MTA structure that is capable of wireless recording of high-quality electrophysiology data, delivery of effective electrical stimulation to all channels, and performance of closed-loop stimulation with an onboard digital signal processor. Preliminary results showed that closed-loop low-frequency stimulation to mPFC could decouple mPFC spindles from hippocampal IEDs in kindled animals, offering the possibility of preventing the development of aberrant functional connectivity between these structures.

• Neural interface

  • Low power, high density, bi-directional front-end design

  • Biocompatible, low power, high speed communication system

  • Extracellular recording technologies for research/clinic

• Systems neuroscience

  • Closed-loop intervention in Epilepsy

  • Neural dynamic of acute pain network

2011.9 – 2016.12 Peking University

• Ph.D. Neuroscience

  Thesis: Development of a novel closed-loop system and its application in neural network research Advisor: You Wan

2007.9 – 2011.7 Peking University

• B.S. Electrical Engineering (Double major)
• B.S. Biomedical Experimentation

• 2018.11-Present — Post-doctoral researcher, Columbia University

  Advisor: Dion Khodagholy

  • Developed implantable neural interface with conductive polymer electrode and embedded system for wireless data-logging
  • Ionic communication for implantable devices

• 2016.12– 2017.7 — Algorithm Engineer, Lepu Medical Technology, Beijing, China

  • Developing an ECG heart condition detection system

    This work resulted in 2 patents (2 more under review). AI-ECG platform got the FDA approval.

    Early Heart Condition Detection Using LEPU AI-ECG: Unleash Healthcare AI Inference Compute Power Using Intel® Distribution of OpenVINO™ Toolkit

• 2013.9 – 2015.10 — Visiting graduate student, New York University Langone Medical Center

  Advisor: Gyorgy Buzsaki

  This work resulted one publication in Science Advance.

  • Participated in developing closed-loop manipulation of neural network
  • Participated in data processing of high resolution Human ECoG

• 2011.9 – 2016.12 — Graduate student, Peking University, Beijing, China

  Advisor: You Wan

  This work resulted in 4 publications, 1 patent.

  • Developed high throughput non-linear synchronization detection of LFP signal

    Mapping the Information Trace in Local Field Potentials by a Computational Method of Two-Dimensional Time-Shifting Synchronization Likelihood Based on Graphic Processing Unit Acceleration - Neuroscience Bulletin

  • Developed a multi-site 3D printed electrode to record from the entire pain matrix

    A Novel 3D-Printed Multi-Drive System for Synchronous Electrophysiological Recording in Multiple Brain Regions

  • Studied the brain dynamic under acute laser induced pain in rat

    Extracting Neural Oscillation Signatures of Laser-Induced Nociception in Pain-Related Regions in Rats

    Electrophysiological Signature of Pain

• 2012.7 – 2012.8 — Joint Summer School, Keio University, Tokyo Japan

  Advisor: Masato Yasui, Yoshiro Sohma

  • Developed an automated analysis software for extracting water flow for coherent anti-stokes Raman scattering imaging data

    Direct visualization and quantitative analysis of water diffusion in complex biological tissues using CARS microscopy - Scientific Reports

• Electrical engineering
  • Circuits design

    • Low noise amplifier design

    • PCB design

      EaglePCB

    • Experience in circuit assembly

    • Mixed signal system design

      • ARM Cortex

        Experiences in peripherals: SPI/SDIO/Timer/DMA/I2C/UART/RTC

      • ASIC

        • Intan RHD2000
        • ADS1292
  • Signal processing
    • Digital signal processing
    • Simulations
      • Spice
      • Matlab
  • Organic electronic transistor
• Programming
  • Low-level programming
    • C
      • Micro-controller
      • CUDA
    • Assembly
      • C8051F MCU
  • High-level programming
    • Matlab
    • Python
    • C++
    • C#
• Neuroscience
  • Rodent surgery
  • Extracellular electrophysiology
  • Neural data analysis
• Microfabrication

  • Mask Layout

    • Tanner EDA
    • K-layout

  • Projects

    • Neurogrid
    • Tool list
    • Ionic communication

    ---

  • Certified Tools

    • REYNOLDSTECH PHOTOLITHOGRAPHY HOODS AND SPINNERS
    • HEIDELBERG DWL 66+ LASER WRITER
    • SUSS MICROTEC DUV MA6 MASK ALIGNER
    • CRESSINGTON 108 MANUAL SPUTTER COATER
    • ANGSTROM EVOVAC DEPOSITION SYSTEM
    • SCS LABCOTER 2 PARYLENE DEPOSITION SYSTEM
    • OXFORD PLASMALAB 80+ ICP
    • KLA P-17 STYLUS PROFILER
    • FEI NOVA NANO SEM 450
• Other
  • Project management
  • Scientific writing
  • 3D printing

Recent publications

1. Zhao,Z., Cea C., Gelinas,J., Khodagholy,D. Responsive manipulation of neural circuit pathology by fully implantable, front-end multiplexed embedded neuroelectronics, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 118 No. 20, 2021
2. Ma, J**., Zhao,Z(Co-first)**,. A novel 3D-printed multi-drive system for synchronous electrophysiological recordings in multiple brain regions. Frontiers in Neuroscience,13 ,1322, 2019
3. **Zhao,Z., Wan, Y. Electrophysiological signature of pain. Advances in Pain Research: Mechanisms and Modulation of Chronic Pain, 167-177, 2018
4. Zhao, Z. F., Li, X. Z., & Wan, Y. (2017). Mapping the Information Trace in Local Field Potentials by a Computational Method of Two-Dimensional Time-Shifting Synchronization Likelihood Based on Graphic Processing Unit Acceleration. Neuroscience bulletin, 33(6), 653-663. 2017
5. Li, X., Zhao, Z(Co-first)., Ma, J., Cui, S., Yi, M., Guo, H., & Wan, Y. (2017). Extracting Neural Oscillation Signatures of Laser-Induced Nociception in Pain-Related Regions in Rats. Frontiers in neural circuits, 11, 71. 2017
6. Khodagholy, D., Gelinas, J. N., Zhao, Z(Co-first)., Yeh, M., Long, M., Greenlee, J. D., ... & Buzsáki, G. Organic electronics for high-resolution electrocorticography of the human brain. Science advances, 2(11), e1601027. 2016

Full publication list:

• Bioel 2019 — Talk

• MRS 2020 Fall meeting —Talk(online)

• NanoGE — Talk(online, Best Oral Contribution Prize)

  https://twitter.com/nanoGe_Conf/status/1441295662549774336/photo/1

• Zusman Workshop — Talk (online)

• MRS 2021 Fall meeting — Talk (online)

• SFN2015 — Poster

• IBRO 2015 — Poster

• iSLC 2015 — Poster

• CSHA 2016 — Poster

1. Zhao,Z., Li, Z., Zhang,Y., Zhou,W., Cao, H., Liu, C. Method for assessing electrocardiogram signal quality. US20200107786A1, 2020
2. Tian,L., Zhang,X., Zhang, Y., Zhao,Z., Su,Z., Cao,J. Artificial intelligence based interference recognition method for electrocardiogram. US20200121255A1 2020
3. Wan,Y., Zhao,Z.,Ma,J. CN107149472A: Electrode propeller suitable for information acquisition of multiple brain areas of rat. 2017