The use of medical diagnostic and patient monitoring equipment has become significantly more widespread over the past several years. Any monitoring equipment that comes in contact with a patient (such as an ultrasound probe) needs to maintain government-mandated touch temperature limits. In addition, the rise of sophisticated testing equipment, such as in-office and in-home PCR (polymerase chain reaction) testers, has become a true game changer. In all of these examples, strict temperature control of at least part of the device is required.
Test Equipment – PCR
PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction) tests are a reliable and accurate way to diagnose certain infectious diseases, some types of cancer, and certain genetic changes. The tests check for small amounts of genetic material of a pathogen (disease-causing organism) or abnormal cells in a sample of your blood, saliva, mucus, or tissue. However, in order for these tests to be accurate and reliable, the temperature of the samples and test reagents must be tightly controlled. By using flexible graphite heat spreaders and flexible graphite thermal interfaces, heat is effectively spread to all parts of the target samples and sensors without hot spots or thermal gradients. Unlike thermal greases or silicone thermal pads, flexible graphite doesn’t outgas anything that can negatively affect the test results.
NeoGraf products:
Test Equipment – Handheld
When a medical device makes prolonged contact with a patient’s skin, its maximum touch temperature must meet strict limits. An ultrasonic transducer, for example, may have its head contact the patient’s skin for several minutes, but its temperature cannot exceed specified limits. Flexible graphite heat spreaders will lower the touch temperature of the device’s shell without affecting form or functionality. Hot internal components, such as a processor, can be cooled to specified limits by applying a die-cut piece of flexible graphite. Graphite is extremely lightweight, an important consideration for a device that must be manually held in place, potentially for several minutes at a time.
