The Effect of Femtosecond Laser Pulse Irradiation on the Properties of Advanced Medical Grade PDMS Polymer

Abstract

The study investigates the effect of the femtosecond laser pulse irradiation on the modification and activation effects of medical-grade polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) polymer. The motivation of the research is based on the continuous interest and variety of applications of the PDMS material in medicine and implantable neural interface devices. The PDMS is the preferred material due to its exceptional properties such as high biocompatibility and biostability, mechanical flexibility and stability, optical transparency from UV to near IR spectral region, and cost-effectiveness. The experimental investigation is performed by a femtosecond laser system with a pulse duration of 35 fs operating at a repetition rate of 1 kHz. Consistent sets of measurements are performed to analyze and characterize the effect of the laser beam parameters on the optical absorption, and surface morphology concerning the laser-treated zones. The morphology and the optical properties of the PDMS are investigated to activate its surface for successful metallization of the modified tracks. The reported findings and observations specify favourable results of the implementation of the ultrafast laser-based method for micro- or nano-processing of optically transparent biopolymers for interface devices in bioengineering technologies such as neural implants and interface applications.