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Core Concepts

Understanding the core concepts of BrainDance will help you design and execute more complex experiments.

Maxwell Environment​

The MaxwellEnv class is the central component that interfaces with the micro electrode array hardware. It handles:

  • Initialization of the hardware
  • Data acquisition
  • Stimulation control
  • Data saving

Example usage:

from braindance.core.maxwell_env import MaxwellEnv
from braindance.core.params import maxwell_params

params = maxwell_params
params['save_dir'] = './experiment_data'
params['name'] = 'my_experiment'
env = MaxwellEnv(**params)

Phases​

Phases are the building blocks of experiments in BrainDance. Each phase represents a specific experimental action or protocol. Common phase types include:

  • RecordPhase: Simple recording of neural activity
  • NeuralSweepPhase: Systematic stimulation of specified electrodes
  • FrequencyStimPhase: Stimulation at a specified frequency

Example of creating a phase:

from braindance.core.phases import RecordPhase

record_phase = RecordPhase(env, duration=60*5)  # 5-minute recording phase

Phase Manager​

The PhaseManager class orchestrates the execution of multiple phases in an experiment. It allows you to:

  • Add phases to the experiment
  • Specify the order of phase execution
  • Run the entire experiment

Example usage:

from braindance.core.phases import PhaseManager

phase_manager = PhaseManager(env, verbose=True)
phase_manager.add_phase_group([record_phase, stim_phase, record_phase])
phase_manager.run()

By combining these core concepts, you can create complex, multi-stage experiments with precise control over stimulation and recording parameters.