A silicon-based spiky probe providing improved cell accessibility during in vitro slice recordings

•A special spiky probe design was developed for in vitro brain slice recordings.•The electrophysiological performance of the device was successfully tested in rat hippocampal slices, in vitro.•The novel probe provided higher neuronal yield and higher spike amplitudes compared to a surface-type probe.•Single unit activities were recorded with high spatial resolution.•Hierarchical clustering and waveform analysis allowed for separating single unit clusters into putative cell types.