Neuroengineering—Engineering the Nervous System

Abstract

Neuroengineering, also known as neural engineering, is a rapidly expanding interdisciplinary field that bridges neuroscience and engineering. It encompasses research at the cellular, tissue, and systems levels, and has become a core discipline within biomedical engineering and beyond. By applying engineering principles and methods, neuroengineering studies the nervous system and develops techniques for diagnosing, treating, and rehabilitating neurological disorders. This field includes neural sensing, signal processing, interfacing, modulation, computation, imaging, and device development, among others. Over the past decade, significant progress has been made in neuroengineering, or neurotechnology, which focuses more on neural devices or tools. This progress is partly attributable to initiatives such as the Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies 1 (BRAIN) Initiative in the U.S. and similar efforts worldwide.