Laser fabrication of a hermetic, injectable medical stimulator package Available to Purchase

Lasers working within tolerances of a few microns can provide ideal solutions for manufacturing cost-effective, miniaturized medical devices. BION^™ is a Class III implantable electronic medical device (2mm OD X 16mm long), hermetically sealed for reliable function in body fluids. Acceptable leak rates are in low 10^-12 mbar.l/sec of He. The electronic circuitry is encapsulated in a glass capsule, with two Ta metal feed throughs to the stimulating electrodes. A CO₂ laser is used to make two glass-to-Ta & two glass-to-glass welds. The Nd:YAG laser cuts the Ta feedthroughs to length and welds them to washer-shaped contacts. It also welds a gold-plated spring contact to a feedthrough. An integrated workstation permits an operator to create the entire packaged device in one sequence of operations, including testing the hermeticity of the glass seals through one Ta feedthrough that is a hollow tube.