Review of the research progress of precision photostimulation for optogenetics

Photostimulation and optogenetic manipulation, by precisely controlling wavelength, light intensity, and spatiotemporal distribution, offer a noninvasive, high‑precision tool for life‑science research. To meet diverse application requirements, precise photostimulation strategies have become increasingly varied. Compared with conventional microscale manipulation methods such as electrical stimulation and pharmacological delivery, optical stimulation not only enables targeted single‑cell control but can also be integrated with microscopy to monitor cellular or tissue dynamics in real time during stimulation, and has thus seen widespread application in neuroscience and cell biology. This review systematically summarizes advances in high‑resolution optical stimulation techniques, presents the principles and characteristics of the two major technical routes—scanning‑based and parallel‑based—and provides a detailed evaluation of implementation methods under both single‑photon and two‑photon excitation. Finally, future development directions are discussed to provide a comprehensive technical reference for researchers in related fields.