Polymer-Encapsulated Phosphor Particles forIn VivoPhosphor Luminescence Applications

Phosphor thermometry is a highly sensitive, rapid, and portable thermal sensing technique that offers advantages over traditional contact-based thermometry techniques. Phosphor particles would however require an encapsulation medium that is biocompatible and yet optically transparent to permit optical access to the embedded phosphor particles. Here, phosphor-doped silicone implants with varying concentrations were prepared and tested in a rat model. Results indicate that such phosphor-doped polymeric implants are stable, produce a detectable signal, and demonstrate the feasibility of phosphor thermometry as a noninvasive remote thermal sensing technique for in vivo applications. Also, encapsulation in silicone did not lead to significant attenuation of the incoming signal.