A Novel Process for the Manufacture of Ceramic Microelectrodes for Biomedical Applications

A novel process, based on microextrusion of preceramic polymers, was developed for manufacturing ceramic microelectrodes, mainly for biomedical applications. A coextrusion approach was used to obtain filaments with inner conductive lines after proper doping. Chemical reticulation and high-temperature pyrolysis were applied to convert the meltable preceramic, polymeric resins into SiOC ceramic materials. Different cross-sectional geometries were produced. The flexural strength of filaments depended on the outer diameter size; doping produced filaments with an average conductivity of B0.4 1/Ώcm for a 50 wt% carbon black load. The results on L929 and MG63 cell line models indicated good biological performance of Si–O–C ceramics and confirmed citocompatibility.