Laser‐Induced Forward Transfer of Soft Materials

Abstract

Laser‐induced forward transfer (LIFT) has been successfully implemented as a promising laser printing technology for the fabrication of two‐dimensional or three‐dimensional soft tissue constructs from soft materials. To control and optimize the laser printing process, it is important to understand the jetting dynamics during the laser printing of soft materials. This chapter explores the effects of fluid properties as well as the combined effects of laser fluence and fluid properties on the jet formation process during laser printing of representative Newtonian (e.g. glycerol) and viscoelastic (e.g. alginate) solutions. A time‐resolved imaging analysis‐based approach was also implemented to investigate the jet formation process. The knowledge obtained from the jetting dynamics study was further applied to investigate the feasibility of 3D alginate and cellular tube fabrication using laser printing.