High-Speed Thermal Imaging Can Resolve Short RF Pulse Effects in Tissue Models

Abstract

Using high-speed transient infrared microscopy, we resolve induced heating and subsequent conductive diffusion of pulsed RF energy delivered by bipolar microneedles to tissue-mimicking samples, using high spatial and temporal resolution, non-contact advanced thermal imaging to gain insight into direct heating of tissue proximal to RF electrodes. We use both IR and thermoreflectance in the same microscope and find that for the samples and time scales chosen in this first study, the spatiotemporal resolution of IR microscopy was sufficient to reveal local RF-induced thermal effects.