Duke Institute for Brain Sciences

I direct the Brain Stimulation Engineering Lab (BSEL) which focuses on the development and modeling of devices and application paradigms for transcranial brain stimulation. Transcranial brain stimulation involves non-invasive delivery of fields (e.g., electric and magnetic) to the brain that modulate neural activity. Transcranial brain stimulation is increasingly used as a tool for brain research and a therapeutic intervention in neurology and psychiatry. My lab works closely with neuroscientists and clinicians to translate novel brain stimulation technology and optimize existing techniques. For example, we have developed a device for transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) that allows extensive control over the magnetic pulse parameters. We are currently deploying this device to optimize the magnetic stimulus in neuromodulatory TMS paradigms. We are also developing efficient algorithms for response estimation and individualization of brain stimulation. Another line of work is finite element computational modeling of the fields induced in the brain by electric and magnetic stimulation. My lab is involved in the integration of transcranial brain stimulation with imaging modalities such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and electroencephalography (EEG), as well as the evaluation of the safety of device–device interactions, for example between transcranial stimulators and implants like deep-brain stimulation (DBS) systems. I also collaborate on projects related to circuit design and control of electrical energy converters.

Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley, 2005

M.S., University of California, Berkeley, 2002

A.B., Harvard University, 1999

Lee, W. H., Deng, Z.-D., Kim, T.-S., Laine, A. F., Lisanby, S. H., and Peterchev, A. V. (2012). Regional electric field induced by electroconvulsive therapy in a realistic finite element head model: Influence of white matter anisotropic conductivity. NeuroImage 59: 2110-2123.

Peterchev, A. V., Murphy, D. L., and Lisanby, S.H. (2011). A repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulator with controllable pulse parameters. J Neural Eng 8: 036016 (13 pp).

Deng, Z.-D., Lisanby, S. H., and Peterchev, A. V. (2011). Electric field strength and focality in electroconvulsive therapy and magnetic seizure therapy: A finite element simulation study. J Neural Eng 8:016007 (13 pp).