Abstract
We developed a miniature fiber optic pressure sensor system and utilized it for in vitro intradiscal pressure measurements for rodents. One of the unique features of this work is the design and fabrication of a sensor element with a multilayer polymer-metal diaphragm. This diaphragm consists of a base polyimide layer (150nm thick), a metal reflective layer (1μm thick), and another polyimide layer for protection and isolation (150nm thick). The sensor element is biocompatible and can be fabricated by simple, batch-fabrication methods in a non-cleanroom environment with good device-to-device uniformity. The fabricated sensor element has an outer diameter of only 366μm, which is small enough to be inserted into the rodent discs without disrupting the structure or altering the intradiscal pressures. In the calibration and in vitro rodent intradiscal pressure measurements, the sensor element exhibits a linear response to the applied pressure over the range of 0-70kPa, with a sensitivity of 0.0206μm/kPa and a resolution of 0.17kPa. To our best knowledge, this work is the first successful demonstration of rodent intradiscal pressure measurements.
Original language | English |
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Article number | 044040 |
Journal | Journal of Biomedical Optics |
Volume | 13 |
Issue number | 4 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 1 Dec 2008 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Fabry-Pérot interferometers
- fiber optic sensors
- intervertebral disc pressure
- low-coherence interferometry
- pressure sensors
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Electronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials
- Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics
- Biomaterials
- Biomedical Engineering