Integrated sensors for medical devices and method of making integrated sensors for medical devices
View Patent ↗Methods of manufacturing a sensor for a medical de vice may include the application of semiconductor fabrication techniques to the manufacture of a sensor directly in a structure of the medical device or in a substrate that can be integrated into a medical device structure. The methods may be applied to manufacture position sensors, strain gauges, other transducers, and the like, and to integrate the sensors into a variety of medical device types including, but not limited to, elongate medical devices.
1. A method of manufacturing a sensor for a medical device, comprising:
providing a tip electrode assembly comprising an atraumatic distal tip portion and a tubular proximal portion;
depositing a layer of dielectric material around a longitudinal axis of the tip electrode assembly;
depositing a first layer of electrically-conductive material radially outward of the layer of dielectric material to form a plurality of electrically-conductive annular portions; and
depositing a second layer of electrically-conductive material to electrically couple adjacent ones of the plurality of electrically-conductive annular portions.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the layer of dielectric material is deposited directly on the tubular proximal portion of the tip electrode.
3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the distal tip portion of the tip electrode and the proximal portion of the tip electrode comprise a monolithic body of electrically-conductive material.
4. The method of claim 1 , wherein depositing the second electrically conductive layer to electrically couple adjacent ones of the electrically-conductive annular portions forms a continuous coil.
5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
depositing a layer of magnetically-permeable material about the tubular proximal portion of the tip electrode assembly;
depositing a mask layer over the layer of magnetically-permeable material;
patterning the mask to reveal a plurality of annular channels in the mask layer;
and
etching the layer of magnetically-permeable material through the plurality of annular channels to create a plurality of annular channels in the magnetically-permeable material;
wherein depositing the first electrically-conductive layer radially to form a plurality of electrically-conductive annular portions comprises seeding and plating the fast electrically-conductive layer in the plurality of annular channels in the magnetically-permeable material.
6. The method of claim 5 , further comprising:
depositing a dielectric about the proximal portion of the tip electrode;
wherein depositing the layer of magnetically-permeable material about the tubular proximal portion of the tip electrode assembly comprises depositing the layer of magnetically-permeable material on the dielectric.
7. The method of claim 6 , wherein the distal tip portion of the tip electrode and the proximal portion of the tip electrode comprise a monolithic body of electrically-conductive material;
further wherein the dielectric is deposited directly on the radially-outermost surface of the proximal portion of the tip electrode.
8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the magnetically-permeable material comprises mu-metal and the electrically-conductive material comprises copper.