Dielectric Properties for Identification of Gliomas and Normal Brain Tissues with Open-Ended Coaxial Probe

The dielectric properties (DPs) of biological tissues are the crucial parameters used in discrimination between normal and malignant tissue. Open-ended coaxial probe (OCP) method has become the most common technique for measuring DPs through vector network analyzer (VNA). This technique secures its promising potential in identifying tumor for its broadband, noninvasive and easy-to-use merit. Many studies have measured the DPs of different human tissues while the technique is still hard to apply in tumor resection. One important problem is the OCP method remains unclear about the detectable tumor size. Therefore, in this work, we examine the identification size of tumor by numerical simulation from 50 MHz to 500 MHz. DPs change under tumor dimension and probe size were discussed. For probe 1 the identification size is 0.51 mm radius, for probe 2 the identification size is 0.77 mm radius, for probe 3 the identification size is 1.40 mm radius. With a better understanding of the identification limit of gliomas of the different probe, this technique is taking a step to clinical practice.