Abstract: The interaction of pulsed ultraviolet radiation with the zona pellucida of human oocytes which had failed to fertilize in standard IVF cycles, was investigated. Two lasers were studied: a 100 ps pulsed Nd:YAG with a nonlinear crystal emitting light at 266 nm, and a 15 ns XeCl excimer laser with 308 nm radiation. Incisions in the zona were made by aiming the beam tangentially to the oocyte. The results indicate superior, high precision performance by the excimer laser creating trenches as narrow as 1 $mu@m and as shallow as 1 $mu@m. The incision size was found to be sensitive to the laser's energy and to the position of the microscope's objective focal plane, but relatively insensitive to the laser pulse repetition rate. Once the minimum spot size was defined by the system parameters, the laser beam was used to curve out any desired zona shape. This laser microsurgery technique as applied to partial zone dissection or zona drilling could prove very useful as a high-precision, non-contact method for treatments of low fertilization rate and for enhancing embryo implantation rates in patients undergoing IVF treatments.!12
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