Optical fibers with different types of polymer coatings were exposed to three sterilization conditions: multiple autoclaving, treatment with ethylene oxide and treatment with gamma rays. Effects of different sterilization techniques on key optical and mechanical properties of the fibers are reported. The primary attention is given to behavior of the coatings in harsh sterilization environments. The following four coating/buffer types were investigated: (i) dual acrylate, (ii) polyimide, (iii) silicone/PEEK and (iv) fluoroacrylate hard cladding/ETFE.

Date Published: 20 March 2013
PDF: 10 pages
Proc. SPIE 8576, Optical Fibers and Sensors for Medical Diagnostics and Treatment Applications XIII, 857606 (20 March 2013); doi: 10.1117/12.1000005

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 8576:
Optical Fibers and Sensors for Medical Diagnostics and Treatment Applications XIII
Israel Gannot, Editor(s)