Pyrometry with flexible infrared fibers for temperature-controlled laser surgery

Pyrometry is widely used in science, medicine, and industry to measure the surface temperature of objects in a non-contact way. IR fibers are an ideal solution for the flexible delivery of thermal radiation emitted from objects inside a complex structure like internal organs inside the human body. Silver halide polycrystalline infrared fibers (PIR) are transparent in a spectral range of 3 - 18 mu m, matching perfectly with the spectra of black body radiation for temperatures ranging from 20 degrees C to 200 degrees C. These fibers are non-toxic and allow small bending radii. They could become critical components in pyrometric systems for temperature-controlled laser surgeries. Here we discuss the ability of the PIR fibers for simultaneous laser power delivery and real-time temperature monitoring in laser surgery applications and demonstrate two different setups for this purpose. (c) 2022 Optical Society of America under the terms of the OSA Open Access Publishing Agreement

Automated summary

Pyrometry is a widely used non-contact method for measuring surface temperature, and infrared fibers have the potential to play a critical role in temperature-controlled laser surgeries.