To understand the working principles of the nervous system is key to figure out its electrical activity and how this activity spreads along the neuronal network. It is therefore crucial to develop advanced techniques aimed to record in real time the electrical activity, from compartments of single neurons to populations of neurons, to understand how higher functions emerge from coordinated activity. To record from single neurons, a technique will be presented to fabricate patch pipettes able to seal on any membrane with a single glass type and whose shanks can be widened as desired. This dramatically reduces access resistance during whole-cell recording allowing fast intracellular and, if required, extracellular perfusion. To simultaneously record from many neurons, biocompatible probes will be described employing multi-electrodes made with novel technologies, based on diamond substrates. These probes also allow to synchronously record exocytosis and neuronal excitability and to stimulate neurons. Finally, to achieve even higher spatial resolution, it will be shown how voltage imaging, employing fast voltage-sensitive dyes and two-photon microscopy, is able to sample voltage oscillations in the brain spatially resolved and voltage changes in dendrites of single neurons at millisecond and micrometre resolution in awake animals.

了解神经系统的工作原理是弄清楚其电活动以及这种活动如何沿神经元网络传播的关键。因此，开发旨在实时记录从单个神经元的隔室到神经元群的电活动的先进技术至关重要，以了解协调活动如何产生更高的功能。为了从单个神经元进行记录，将提出一种技术来制造贴片移液管，该移液管能够用单一玻璃类型密封在任何膜上，并且其柄部可以根据需要加宽。这大大降低了全细胞记录过程中的访问阻力，允许快速的细胞内和细胞外灌注，如果需要的话。为了同时记录许多神经元，生物相容性探针将描述采用基于金刚石基板的新技术制成的多电极。这些探针还允许同步记录胞吐作用和神经元兴奋性并刺激神经元。最后，为了实现更高的空间分辨率，将展示电压成像如何使用快速电压敏感染料和双光子显微镜，能够以毫秒为单位对大脑中的电压振荡进行采样，空间分辨率和单个神经元树突中的电压变化和清醒动物的微米分辨率。