Porcine cortical bone ablation by ultrashort pulsed laser irradiation

Abstract

Ultrashort pulsed lasers in bone ablation show promise for many orthopedic applications. To minimize ollateral tissue damage and control the ablation process, the ablation threshold fluence must be well characterized. Using an amplified femtosecond laser (170 fs, 800 nm, 1 kHz), the ablation threshold on unaltered porcine ortical bone was measured using the D2 method at multiple incident pulse numbers ranging from 25 to 1000 ulses per spot. The lowered threshold at greater pulse numbers indicated an incubation effect. Using a power aw model, the incubation coefficient of unaltered porcine cortical bone was found to be 0.89± 0.03. Through xtrapolation, the single-pulse ablation threshold was found to be 3.29± 0.14 J?cm2. © 2012 Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE.