Abstract: Disclosed is a cochlear implant (Cl) and a method of generating stimulations for the CI. The Cl may include, at least one optical signal generator configured to generate a plurality of optical signals having a wavelength of at most 1600 nm, and a plurality of light emitters, for delivering the optical signals to different locations along a cochlear nerve. The method may further include optimizing the stimulation energy through selection of stimulation wavelengths and stimulation pulse shapes.

Abstract: Disclosed is a method of selecting stimulations for a cochlear implant or an auditory implant. The method may include: capturing an acoustical signal; dividing the acoustical signal into a plurality of frequency bands; determining a mean acoustical energy for each frequency band; for each frequency band: comparing the mean acoustical energy with the mean acoustical energy determined for neighboring frequency bands; merging neighboring frequency bands having a difference between the mean acoustical energies that is less than an acoustical energy threshold value; selecting one or more types of stimulation to be applied to one or more locations in a cochlea or along an auditory nerve based on bandwidths of each frequency band. The one or more types of stimulation may be selected from: electrical stimulation, optical stimulation and opto-electrical stimulation, and the one or more locations in cochlea or along the auditory nerve may correspond to specific frequencies of the acoustical signal.