Engineers in the Raydiance Applications Lab have recently demonstrated the ability to precisely ablate fine features in both gold and platinum, two materials that are of great value to the medical device market but which are notoriously difficult to machine.

The team ablated prototype stent designs in 18k gold tubing at a linear processing rate of 6 mm/s and in a platinum:iridium alloy at a rate of 1.75 mm/s. Both finished parts had excellent edge quality and no apparent heat affected zones.

Given their biocompatibility, electrical conductivity, high density, and resistance to oxidation and corrosion, gold and platinum are materials of choice for a number of biomedical applications, including leads for cardiac rhythm devices and pacemakers as well as X-ray markers for stents and guide wires.

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