Infrared-transmitting fiber optics for biomedical applications

The availability of low loss and high strength chalcogenide fibers is enabling many applications, including biomedical. We report the fabrication and use of chalcogenide fibers for biomedical spectroscopy, scanning near field IR microscopy (SNIM) and laser power delivery. For example, lateral resolution of 20 nm and optical resolution of about 100 nm have been demonstrated for SNIM. The preliminary results are very encouraging and more work is being performed in lowering the losses and improving the performance of the fibers in the appropriate applications.