RF applications
A calibrated roller pump (CoolPoint, Abbott) connected to the catheter delivered saline solution at 20 ml/min for the FlexAbilityTM SEM catheter and 17-30 ml/min for the TactiCathTM SE catheter (17 ml/min at 20W and 30W, 30 ml/min at 40W) during RF delivery as recommended by the manufacturer for clinical use of each catheter. An Ampere RF generator (Abbott) was connected to deliver 550 kHz unmodulated sine-wave RF energy pulses in a temperature-controlled mode (maximum temperature 40℃). Different power settings, contact intensities, RF duration, and catheter orientation were used during the experiment, as discussed in the following sections.