ABSTRACT
The purpose of this chapter is to provide an understanding of how ion channels produce membrane excitability. The neuroprosthetic theories and devices described in this book depend to varying degrees on the excitability of neural membranes and on the function of many different types of voltagegated ion channels. The overall problem is that neuroprosthetic devices, such as retinal implants, cochlear implants, deep brain stimulators, and motor prostheses, achieve their effect by selectively exciting a neuron or nerve. In the retina, it can be the ganglion cells or the bipolar cells; in the ear, the spiral ganglion neurons; or for motor prostheses, near the nerve-muscle junction.
