Multiphysical Characterization of a Tissue-Mimicking Phantom: Composition, Thermal Behavior, and Broadband Electromagnetic Properties from Visible to Terahertz and Microwave Frequencies

TL;DR

This paper presents a phantom material that mimics muscle tissue and evaluates its thermal and electromagnetic properties across various frequencies for biomedical applications.

Contribution

The study introduces a validated tissue-mimicking phantom with consistent dielectric-thermal behavior across multiple electromagnetic regimes.

Findings

The phantom has a relative permittivity of 37.4 and electrical conductivity of 2.4 S/m in the microwave range.

THz measurements show strong broadband attenuation typical of water-rich materials.

Hyperthermia-level irradiation causes a thermal drift of −3.985 °C/h due to hydration-mediated moisture redistribution.

Abstract

A water-rich muscle-equivalent tissue-mimicking phantom within a polymeric matrix was experimentally evaluated through a multimodal characterization methodology to determine whether it reproduces the coupled dielectric–thermal behavior of hydrated biological tissue under exposure to electromagnetic waves. The material was analyzed using thermogravimetric analysis, microwave dielectric spectroscopy from 1.5 to 4.0 GHz, VIS–NIR spectroscopy between 350 and 1200 nm, and terahertz time-domain reflection. The thermogravimetric results confirmed dominant water content, with primary mass loss below 200 °C, establishing hydration as the governing factor of its thermal response. Next, the microwave dielectric measurements show that the phantom exhibits a relative permittivity of 37.4 and an electrical conductivity of 2.4 S/m. On the other hand, the VIS–NIR spectra show smooth broadband absorption with limited spatial variability, and principal component analysis reveals macroscopic optical homogeneity without structural spectral distortion. In the THz regime, strong broadband attenuation characteristic of water-rich matrices is observed, and reflection-mode measurements enable robust assessment of temporal stability through time- and frequency-domain signatures. Finally, a microwave thermal validation demonstrates stable behavior under low-power excitation, whereas under hyperthermia-level irradiation, a significant thermal drift of −3.985 °C/h was reached under non-adiabatic conditions, identifying hydration-mediated moisture redistribution as the principal limitation during prolonged high-power exposure. Collectively, these results demonstrate cross-regime dielectric–thermal consistency while explicitly defining the hydration-driven constraints governing long-term stability, providing a validated reference material for broadband electromagnetic and thermal biomedical experimentation.

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