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Production of Medical Laser Components

Production of Medical Laser Components

Cutting, Welding, Drilling, Marking: Laser Technology Guarantees the Highest Precision

Christoffer Riemer, MeKo Laserstrahl-Materialbearbeitungen e.K.

 

The production of medical laser components requires the application of different laser technology: laser cutting, drilling, welding, and marking – individually or in combination.

Lasers are particularly precise when it comes to cutting; in fact, it is possible to achieve cuts and holes at a size of 2 µm and up – at a precision in the µm range. As a comparison, a single hair is approximately 60 µm thick. New developments, such as ultrashort pulse (USP) lasers, make this possible. The pulse duration of USP laser pulses is just pico or femtoseconds.

The advantages of laser cutting in medical technology are manifold. In addition to high-precision microprocessing – which makes the production of many small components possible and feasible – lasers produce clean and almost perfect cutting edges. They provide high flexibility when cutting various shapes and objects. For the most part, they do not require the creation of tools; therefore, they are predestined for rapid prototyping.

The objects are cut from either flat material or tubes. The latter has the advantage that it is possible to create a three-dimensional object by applying a rotational axis during two-dimensional processing. This process is applied in particular when manufacturing stents and cardiac valve frames. Other typical components include parts for minimally invasive surgery, stone extraction baskets, bone saws, orthopedic devices, and several implants.

Stent-manufacturing with laser

Beyond Borders

Stents are one of the most commonly used medical implants. They consist of a wireframe in the shape of a small tube and are used to alleviate vascular constriction and prevent the re-narrowing of the blood vessels. The stents are expanded in the arteries using a balloon, or they unfold on their own. They can be equipped with a medicated coating.
Important material characteristics include biocompatibility, application safety, visibility during X-ray, mechanical properties for expansion and, if necessary, the degradation of absorbable stents.

There are many different stent designs available. These determine flexibility and stability (e.g., due to the stent’s dimensions and the thickness of the struts). The stent struts can be cut precisely using a laser to within just a few µm.

Materials of medical components

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Very different materials can be used in the production of medical components. In addition to stainless steel and cobalt chrome alloys, NiTi is a popular material.
This shape-memory alloy is made of nickel and titanium and is extremely elastic. Due to its high elasticity, NiTi stents are primarily used where vessels are particularly vulnerable (e.g., in the legs).

A view in the future

The focus of current developments is on biologically absorbable stents made of polymers (PLLA, …) or magnesium. The aim is the recovery of the flexibility of the vessel after degradation has begun. This should help prevent infection, delayed thromboses, and recurrent vascular constriction, as well as provide an increase in acceptance by patients. The degradation of the stents occurs within just a few months and can be affected by the selection of material and coatings.

 

 

 

Christoffer Riemer is the head of marketing at MeKo.

MeKo is one of the largest contract manufacturers of medical laser components worldwide. As early as 1995, MeKo was one of the pioneers of stent production. Its R&D department developed RESOLOY®, which is a unique magnesium alloy for the production of absorbable stents.
MeKo is certified according to ISO 9001 and ISO 13485 and has manufactured more than 70,000 different components.
www.MeKo.de

Jonathan Norton
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Product Overview

Beyond Borders

Aspherical lens Aspherical lens
Aspherical Lenses

Aspherical lenses correct aberrations, which in monochromatic light include image sharpness errors and distortion.

A typical application of these lenses is the focusing of a collimated beam onto an optical fiber.
Polarization Optics Polarization Optics
Brewster Plates

Brewster plates are used to separate s- and p-polarized light.

Brewster plates have a rectangular shape and are inserted at a specific angle of incidence to the laser beam. Light that is polarized parallel to the plane of incidence/reflection is completely transmitted at Brewster’s angle, whereas about 50 % of s-polarized light is transmitted.
Spherical Mirrors Spherical Mirrors
Cavity Mirror / End Mirror

Cavity end mirrors are used to generate the laser beam in the resonator.

Resonator end mirrors, also known as cavity mirrors, are designed to have high reflectivity at the desired laser wavelength in order to maximize the efficiency of the laser.
Cylindrical lens Cylindrical lens
Cylindrical Lenses

ROUND AND RECTANGULAR CYCLINDER LENSES ARE USED TO CREATE LINES / BEAM EXPANSIONS IN ONE DIRECTION.

We offer plano-concave and plano-convex cyclindrical lenses in rectangular, square, and round form.
Diagnostic Beam Splitter Diagnostic Beam Splitter
Diagnostic Beam Splitters

DIAGNOSTIC BEAM SPLITTERS FOR PROCESS MONITORING

Dichroic mirrors separate or combine two or more beams of different wavelengths in the desired ratio and enable process monitoring on the operating level in several wavelength ranges, as well as beam diagnostics. Their complex design enables multiple transmission and reflection ranges.
Dichroic Mirrors Dichroic Mirrors
Dichroic Mirrors

combine or separate two or more beams with different wavelengths.

Customized dichroic mirrors that are suitable for your individual application are manufactured upon request. 
Gaussian Mirrors Gaussian Mirrors
Gaussian Mirrors

The degree of reflection slopes from the center of the optic in a Gaussian distribution. 

Gaussion mirrors are used in unstable resonators - mostly as meniscus lenses with an integrated wedge to avoid back reflections despite of antireflection coatings.
Optical Flat Mirrors High Power Optical Flat Mirrors High Power
High-power Laser Mirrors

Optimized for high-power lasers with intense pulse energies or high average powers

Mirrors for high-power lasers are high-precision optical components that direct or focus the laser beam. Thanks to a dielectric coating, the mirrors reflect the laser beam efficiently and withstand the high thermal load caused by the laser energy.
Optical Windows Optical Windows
Laser Debris Shield

Protective windows are used during laser material processing to protect against material splashes.

Protective windows are the last optics to be used in front of the work area. They protect high-quality laser optics from material splashes during cutting, welding, drilling, structuring, marking and additive manufacturing. Protective windows are available in a variety of shapes and qualities.
Laser Line Beam Splitter Laser Line Beam Splitter
Laser Line Beam Splitter

FOR SPLITTING INTO ONE OR MORE DEFINED PARTIAL BEAMS.

When working with lasers, it is often necessary to split a laser beam into two or more defined partial beams. There are a variety of beam splitters for these applications, with different advantages and disadvantages. Dielectrically coated beam splitters have a high laser damage threshold. 
Laser Windows Laser Windows
Laser Windows

Transmissive Plano-Parallel Plates WITH MINIMAL DISTORTION, SCATTERING OR ABSORPTION

Optical windows for laser applications are flat, transparent substrates made of materials with excellent optical properties. They are usually optimized to provide maximum transmission in a specific wavelength range providing low reflection and absorption at the same time.
Polychromatic Beam Splitters Polychromatic Beam Splitters
Multiple-Wavelength Beam Splitters

FOR THE SIMULTANEOUS PROCESSING OF LIGHT OF DIFFERENT WAVELENGTHS

Multi-wavelength beam splitters can be optimised for different ratios of reflected and transmitted light.  

LASER COMPONENTS USA - Your competent partner for optical and optoelectronic components in the United States.

Welcome to LASER COMPONENTS USA, Inc., your expert for photonics components. Each product in our wide range of detectors, laser diodes, laser modules, optics, and more is worth every Dollar ($/USD). Our customized solutions cover all conceivable areas of application: from sensor technology to medical technology. You can reach us here:

116 South River Road
Building C
Bedford, NH 03110
USA

Phone: +1 603 821 7040
Email: info(at)laser-components.com

Team of experts
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Jonathan Norton Jonathan Norton
Sales Account Manager / Optics
Jonathan Norton
LASER COMPONENTS USA Inc.
03110 Bedford, NH
Huyen Vu
Sales Director / Optics, Lasers
Huyen Vu
LASER COMPONENTS USA Inc.
03110 Bedford, NH
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Laser Components

116 South River Road
Building C
Bedford, NH 03110
USA

Phone: +1 603 821 7040

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