Accidental injury to the human retina from a picosecond Ti:sapphire laser

The rising number of applications of ultrashort laser systems presents new challenges in laser safety. Retinal damage studies have demonstrated that less energy is required to create a retinal burn for pulses shorter than one nanosecond than for pulses longer than one nanosecond.(1-3) Furthermore, as laser systems become more complex, the potential for accidental injury increases. In this paper we report the accidental injury from a Ti:Sapphire amplifier system delivering 100 picosecond pulses. The circumstances leading to the binocular injury included the use of inadequate eye protection, a defective amplifier crystal and the very dim appearance of 800 nm light. Ophthalmologists evaluating patients with laser eye injury should be prepared to discuss the physiology of the injury and prognosis with their patients.