Manufacturing by laser direct-write of three-dimensional devices containing optical and microfluidic networks

Abstract

The index of refraction of most glasses can be permanently changed by exposure to femtosecond laser pulses. This effect allows for the fabrication of various two-dimensional or three-dimensional light guiding structures. Passive and active optical devices have been manufactured using this femtosecond direct-write technique. A closely related technique has recently been demonstrated to manufacture three-dimensional microfluidic networks. We describe recent work at Translume and RPI in femtosecond direct write to produce devices which incorporate on a single glass chip optical network with microfluidic network.