Laser technology: leading the field of medical device manufacturing

Particle-free, precision laser equipment for a wide range of medical device applications

Since the development of lasers 50 years ago, laser technology has been the mainstay of science and industry. Laser technology was originally seen as a tool for brighter light sources, enhanced military equipment, and improved communication, and was gradually introduced into modern manufacturing, including medical device manufacturing, because it provides a precise and clean cut. , processing and welding methods.

Laser technology creates a high-quality surface treatment by controlling the output of a high-energy beam of the substrate, melting, ablating or evaporating the material. Although lasers are less than traditional processing techniques in the medical device manufacturing industry, they have tangible advantages: they provide a cleaner edge finish than punching; complex components can be made without the use of expensive tools. ; has faster speeds than other processing methods and is capable of handling a variety of materials. Therefore, in the field of medical device manufacturing, laser technology is likely to lead another 50 years - even longer.

Laser welding

Leister Technologies LLC (Illinois, USA) is a company specializing in the production of high-power diode laser systems that have developed laser-generating devices that can form points, lines, and a variety of custom shaped lasers. The company's laser systems are non-contact, vibration-free and stress-free, and can be used to weld plastic materials for localized energy applications. The company also offers a variety of laser transmission methods to meet the needs of plastic welding applications, including contouring, synchronization, masking and radial technology.

Leister General Manager Jerry Zybko commented: "In plastic bonding applications, we use a diode-based laser system. Since it is solid, there is no need to use any accessories. In other words, it is not necessary to use Nd:YAG laser technology. Required CO2 laser tubes or lamps.” Diode lasers are available in 808- or 940-nm wavelengths to meet polymer application requirements at different reaction wavelengths. For the above reasons, the company integrated diode lasers into its transmissive infrared plastic laser welding platform.

“The plastics that our system handles consist of two layers: a transparent layer and an absorbing layer. The laser passes through the transparent layer and is absorbed by the underlying absorbing layer, and you can generate heat at the laser-absorbed interface,” says Zybko.

Used for manufacturing microfluidic devices, Leister's Novolas laser equipment relies on mask technology, in which the laser welds all the surfaces of a substrate except for the microfluidic channels themselves.

Leister's Novolas laser equipment utilizes proprietary masking techniques for the fabrication of microfluidic devices that laser weld all surfaces of the substrate except the microfluidic channel itself. The chrome-plated glass mask is used to remove the chromium from specific parts and pass the laser to determine the ideal soldering area. A flat top assembly and a bottom assembly containing injection molded microfluidic channels are located beneath the mask and are subjected to clamping forces. Light passes through the stacked structure, and the mask prevents light from reaching the microfluidic channel. “Therefore, a laser can be used to seal the assembly, leaving a microfluidic channel. This technology is suitable for microfluidic plastic sheet structures that can be formed into a variety of weld shapes without the risk of vibration or particulate build-up.” Zybko Said.

According to Zybko, laser welding has played a prominent role in the field of microfluidics, and has also made progress in the field of joint operation between catheters and catheters. Leister's Novolas WC-C laser machine uses a technique called radial welding to accomplish this. In this technique, components such as valves are inserted into a plastic tube in a circular polished metal having a conical inner diameter. When the laser light from the above device reaches the plastic part, simultaneous welding can be achieved around the contour of the tube. "The laser does not rotate or move, but emits in a circular shape and reaches a small angle by means of diffractive optics. When it touches the polishing cone, it can be directly refracted directly to the junction of the catheter and the catheter," Zybko explained.

The application of laser technology in these fields has become more and more economical, but laser-based products still require precise motion control using xy devices. In addition, when using the above equipment, the operator must take laser shielding measures, which increases the cost of operation.

Zybko added that, despite this, laser processing has many advantages over other technologies. For example, it does not produce particles, contamination or flashing, and the welding can be done inside the part, preventing the splashing of excess material. Conversely, when parts are welded using 30 KHz ultrasonics, the resulting vibrations cause the polymer to decompose to a certain extent and form particles that must be vacuumed or washed out—especially for microfluidic instruments. “With a laser, we can use glass to hold the plastic. We don't move, rotate, vibrate or use ultrasound to move the material up and down. The processed parts are very clean and don't affect the volume. If you need 100-pl Space, you can achieve after component assembly and welding," Zybko said.

Laser micromachining

“Laser micromachining is suitable for clean cutting, drilling and forming of polymers and materials that are difficult to micromachinize with other technologies,” said Bill Kallgren, sales manager at JPSA (Manchester, New Hampshire; ). The company's UV technology uses the light-cutting process—the volatilization caused by the ultraviolet light emitted by the laser—to form a plasma plume that removes extremely fine and quantitative materials. According to Kallgren, the result is a clean hole, channel or part.

In addition to diode-pumped solid-state lasers, laser micromachining equipment, and UV and vacuum UV laser beam delivery systems, the company offers a variety of laser systems, including the IX-3000 ChromAblate, a micron-scale process that enables micron processing. Molecular laser systems with tolerances up to sub-micron. Typical applications include stents, catheters, microfluidic devices, lab-on-a-chip biosensors, nozzles, and micro-motor systems. Kallgren pointed out that JPSA machines can handle a variety of materials, including polymers, ceramics, glass, metals and other materials.

JPSA's UV excimer laser systems can create micron-scale features with submicron tolerances.

Laser technology contributes to the production of many complex medical devices because of its sharp contours, smooth walls, transparent, shiny surfaces and other complex features. Kallgren commented: "The field of medical device manufacturing, such as microfluidic design, often requires the processing of complex holes, cones, channels or sampling chambers. These may be miniature features, but at the same time require uniform and stable size. UV excimer laser equipment Complex and repeatable geometries can be machined."

Although the goal is to create complex geometries, different application areas require different custom equipment. “Our standard systems are advanced engineering equipment, but they are modular in design, so I can increase or decrease the equipment according to customer requirements,” explains Kallgren. For example, a system for simple machining may have an XY-θ platform, and if a focus adjustment is required, it may have a z-θ platform. On the other hand, customers may need tape-and-roll platforms and visual alignment equipment for automated mass production.

In an excimer laser system, an additional motion axis may be required to perform an automatic mask change function to select different images and project them onto the target. Coordinated relative motion allows the system to scan masks within the beam range and, in some specific cases, scan the underlying components simultaneously. “In a nutshell, the system can only perform four-axis motion or 16-axis motion, depending on the customer's approach,” says Kallgren.

Kallgren said that looking ahead, wavelength and thermal control are areas that require special attention. “Customers no longer cut metal stents, they are more concerned with new materials, such as bioabsorbable materials. The problem is that many of these materials are sensitive to heat.” For example, YAG, CO2 or continuous lasers are often used for stent cutting. These techniques form heat-affected zones that can cause damage to stents made from new materials. However, according to Kallgren, ordinary UV lasers are not ideal, despite their high photon energy and band gap.

Kallgren said: "We expect pulse width to be another way to improve quality. With shorter pulse widths, the light is in contact with the material for a shorter period of time and the manufacturing process is cooler." Based on this goal, the company explores picoseconds or femtoseconds. Laser-wavelength pulse range of diode-pumped solid or excimer laser applications. Kallgren added that these technologies enable multiphoton absorption and generate less heat on the target substrate, making it a clean, high resolution, high fidelity micromachining method.

According to Zybko of Leister Technologies, the heat generated by the laser is questionable, and laser technology can also form a smaller heat affected zone because it can only melt and bond the required plastic. Therefore, if a channel in a microfluidic device already contains reagents or liquids, the heat generated by the laser will not affect it. (Author: Bob Michaels)

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