Material Development
Magnetic nanoparticles and hybrid materials are produced using automated manufacturing techniques. They are developed for their specific medical application while allowing their properties to be controlled inside the human body using electromagnetic fields.
Magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) usually consist of a core of iron-oxide and an organic coating. They can be used as actuators in medical therapies for drug and/or heat release inside tissue. They can also act as sensors for diagnostic purposes, such as contrast agents in medical imaging. Important for the functionality of the MNPs is the correct matching of their physical properties to the respective application.
The workgroup Nanomagnetic Medical Engineering uses automated and highly scalable manufacturing techniques that allow the synthesis of MNPs with custom sizes, magnetic properties and characteristics of the stabilizing coating. To be able to control the various parameters during synthesis (i.e. pressure, temperature, etc.) powerful inline measuring techniques are used. The synthesis of MNPs follows international standards to ensure conformity with requirements for medical products. This enables a production process yielding MNPs with well-defined properties accelerating their clinical translation.