Properties of ns-laser processed polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)

The medical-grade polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) elastomer is a widely used biomaterial in medicine and for preparation of high-tech devices because of its remarkable properties. In this work, we present the experimental results on drilling holes on the PDMS surface by using ultraviolet, visible or near-infrared ns-laser pulses and on studying the changes of the chemical composition and structure inside the processed areas. The material in the zone of the holes is studied by XRD, ?-Raman analyses and 3D laser microscopy in order to obtain information on the influence of different processing laser parameters, as wavelength, fluence and number of consecutive pulses on the material transformation and its modification

Laser-induced surface modification of biopolymers - Micro/nanostructuring and functionalization

The medical-grade polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) elastomer is a widely used biomaterial in medicine for preparation of high-tech devices because of its remarkable properties. In this paper, we present experimental results on surface modification of PDMS elastomer by using ultraviolet, visible, and near-infrared ns-laser system and investigation of the chemical composition and the morphological structure inside the treated area in dependence on the processing parameters - wavelength, laser fluence and number of pulses. Remarkable chemical transformations and changes of the morphological structure were observed, resulting in the formation of a highly catalytically active surface, which was successfully functionalized via electroless Ni and Pt deposition by a sensitizing-activation free process. The results obtained are very promising in view of applying the methods of laser-induced micro- and nano-structuring and activation of biopolymers' surface and further electroless metal plating to the preparation of, e.g., multielectrode arrays (MEAs) devices in neural and muscular surface interfacing implantable systems