Multiphoton Polymerization line

Multiphoton polymerization (MPP) is a high-resolution, 3D laser microfabrication technique allowing the creation of complex structures  with the size down to 100 nm. In this process, our laser beam induces chemical reactions between photo-initiator molecules and monomers resulting in the curing of the resin. Usually, a femtosecond laser is used for this application in order to generate a high intensity of light in the focal point and create a single voxel of the 3D structure. Most photosensitive resins are transparent to near-infrared, which allows  the laser to penetrate deeply into the material. The structures can be created without contact with oxygen, which can significantly reduce the efficiency and precision of the process.

This microfabrication technique is making its way into medical and life science applications, such as the manufacturing of lattices for cell growth or the restoration of diseased or damaged tissue. The MPP technique allows for optimising the size and shape of the lattice to match optimal requirements for a particular tissue. Typically polymers are much better biocompatible than most non-organic lattices (e.g. metal, glass, ceramics). Some polymers are biodegradable and allow the lattice implantation into the body for the whole healing process.

Other medical applications involving the MPP technique are the manufacturing of porous biocompatible microfilters, microfluidic devices, aspheric lenses for endoscopes, and even nanorobots. Bending, stretching or moving objects can be designed with structures of several materials with different expansion coefficients (e.g. when exposed to moisture or certain chemical reagent).

Biolit 2 laser features extremely short (< 80 fs), clean pulses with high peak intensity (> 1 MW) and  energy (> 130 nJ)  as well near diffraction limited beam quality. Those features improve the control of the highly nonlinear MPP process and allow the making of precise and reproducible 3D microstructures. Biolit 2 laser has integrated tuneable dispersion pre-compensation (up to 10’000 fs2) to make sure that maximal peak power is achieved right on the sample, compensating for the dispersion of the optics. Biolit 2  laser head is compact and passively air cooled and can be operated on a plug-and-play basis. With our products, we guarantee the shortest time-to-result!