In Vivo X-Ray Imaging of Phosphor-Doped PDMS and Phosphor-Doped Aerogel Biomaterials

Noninvasive rapid in vivo imaging and detection of biomedical implants is a critical part of the design and implementation of smart implants. Thermographic phosphors offer a precise and remotely accessible sensing method that has been utilized here. We present the first in vivo X-ray images of La2O2S:Eu-doped crosslinked silica aerogels and polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) with increasing dopant concentrations. Results show that native PDMS and crosslinked silica aerogel do not show noticeable attenuation of X-rays while image analysis yields values of the absorption coefficient of 0.014 for the doped aerogel and a range of 0.015–0.017 for the doped PDMS.