Miniaturized optically generated Bessel beam ultrasound for volumetric transcranial brain stimulation.

Overview

1. Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Boston University, Boston, MA 02215, USA
2. Department of Radiology, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
3. CECS–Center for Engineering, Modeling and Applied Social Sciences, Federal University of ABC (UFABC), São Bernardo do Campo, SP 09606405, Brazil
4. Department of Biomedical Engineering, Boston University, Boston, MA 02215, USA
5. Division of Materials Science and Engineering, Boston University, Boston, MA 02215, USA
6. Department of Chemistry, Boston University, Boston, MA 02215, USA

Abstract

Noninvasive stimulation of small, variably shaped brain subregions is crucial for advancing our understanding of brain functions. Current ultrasound neuromodulation faces two major trade-offs when targeting brain subregions: miniaturization versus volumetric control and spatial resolution versus transcranial capability. Here, we present an optically generated Bessel beam ultrasound (OBUS) device designed to overcome these limitations. This miniaturized device, measuring 2.33 millimeters in diameter, delivers a column-shaped field achieving a lateral resolution of 152 micrometers and an axial resolution of 1.93 millimeters, enabling targeting of brain subregions with an elongated volume of tissue activation. Immunofluorescence imaging of mouse brain slices confirms its ability to stimulate cells at depths up to 2.1 millimeters. In addition, OBUS outperforms conventional Gaussian ultrasound in transcranial transmission efficiency and beam shape preservation. Electrophysiological recordings and functional MRI captured rodent brain responses evoked by OBUS, demonstrating OBUS’s ability to noninvasively activate neural circuits in intact brains. This technology offers expanded possibilities for studying brain functions with precision and volumetric control.

Reproduced under the paper's license (CC BY-NC), from the paper cited above.

Code

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Data

Datasets cited

• doi:10.5061/dryad.zgmsbccr0 — at Dryad; found in “Data, code, and materials availability:”

Data, code, and materials availability

All data and code needed to evaluate and reproduce the results in the paper are present in the paper and/or the Supplementary Materials. This study did not generate new materials. The data for this study have been deposited in the database Dryad: https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.zgmsbccr0.

Reproduced under the paper's license (CC BY-NC), from the paper cited above.

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Version 1, 29 September 2026: the first record

Recorded: type, language, journal, volume, issue, pages, dates, 11 authors, 6 MeSH terms, 3 funders, 55 references.

Cite

This paper

Li, Y., Chen, G., Oliveira, T. R., Todd, N., Zhang, Y.-Z., Marar, C., Zheng, N., Lan, L., McDannold, N., Cheng, J.-X., & Yang, C. (2026). Miniaturized optically generated Bessel beam ultrasound for volumetric transcranial brain stimulation. Science advances, 12(15), eadz7708. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adz7708

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