Mount a Utah array to a pencil

A multelectrode array (Utah array) is a tiny panel with multiple electrodes on it, used for neuroscience. This is the same array that has been in the news for allowing a paralyzed patient to move a robot arm. I use it in epilepsy research.

The electrode is rather pricey and degrades with use so I have to mount it very carefully. The bulky blocky black box is an XYZ manipulator which allows me to move the array across a microscope stage and lower it carefully. I needed a non-conductive mount for the array that also fit into the manipulator; I found that a pencil works better than whatever the correct medical solution is. That pencil is a Mirado Black Warrior. I also needed something 'rubbery' to attach the array itself to the eraser. I've used silicone sealant in the past but it oozes before it sets and is not workable after it cures. So I used sugru.

The pink sheet from the first photo is dental wax. I placed the electrode face down, put a pea of white sugru on the back, and lowered the pencil down at a slight angle using the manipulator. After the Sugru set, I trimmed it back with surgical tools. It works better than any solution I've tried so far.We use sugru a lot in the lab. In the background of this photo you can see a Panavise with red sugru feet.