Fibrin phantom for use in optical coherence tomography

Abstract

This work presents a novel tissue-mimicking phantom for use in a range of optical coherence tomography (OCT) experiments. Such phantoms are critical in the development and assessment of new OCT techniques, but no previously published phantoms have become universally accepted. We present the first description of a phantom based on a fibrin matrix, which improves key attributes of previously published methods. It provides a biocompatible, optically transparent scaffold in which to incorporate organic and/or inorganic optical scattering materials. Its fabrication time is markedly shorter than many common phantoms, and its lifetime is longer than other biocompatible phantoms. The potential of fibrin phantoms incorporating Intralipid() to introduce uniform optical scattering is demonstrated. The measured attenuation coefficient as a function of Intralipid concentration confirms the ability to control optical scattering. A bilayer phantom with distinct optical scattering in each layer is also presented.