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York Neuroimaging Centre
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Sleep lab

Our state-of-the-art, three-bedroom sleep laboratory provides a dedicated research space for studying human sleep with polysomnography (PSG). 

PSG monitors many of the body’s functions that change between wakefulness and sleep, including brain activity, eye movements, cardiac rhythms, respiratory airflow and skeletal muscle activation. 

Research conducted in our sleep lab has provided important insights into the neurobiological mechanisms by which sleep supports cognition and mental health.

Our projects

Reactivating memories in the sleeping brain

Investigating changes in the EEG signal that accompany reactivation events, focusing on sleep spindles and slow oscillations.

Intrusive thoughts and mental health

Combining fMRI, EEG and neurophysiology to investigate how sleep disturbances impact on people’s ability to suppress unwanted memories.

Sleep and language comprehension

Using behavioural testing and EEG to uncover how sleep affects the way we comprehend language.

Developmental and white matter correlates of word learning

Examining whether children aged 10 to 12 years can outperform adults' consolidation of newly learned words over a nap.