**7. Docking**

For the fs lasers to be docked with the eyes, head must be in the fixed laser housing, the articulated arm holding handpiece be on the eye, and there should be a distance between eye surface and laser optics. Sterile, single-use components, referred to as "patient interfaces," are used to actually make contact with the eye. There are two types of interfaces in use: an applanating interface, which has a curved or flat surface that touches the cornea directly; and a liquid-filled interface, which has a vacuum ring that makes contact with the sclera or the outer cornea and a liquid-filled center. The liquid-filled interface maintains the cornea's natural shape while enabling laser energy transmission. Despite the fact that contact surfaces momentarily alter the curvature of the cornea [10], mechanical contact significantly stabilizes the cornea during surgery. This is especially crucial in refractive surgery, where micrometer-level tissue movement must be prevented and precise incisions are necessary. Because refractive surgery has no obvious clinical downsides [11–13], contact interfaces will predominate in corneal surgery in the future (**Figure 6**). Liquid-filled interfaces that cause minimum disruption to the eye may end up being the best option for cataract surgery. Vacuum docking contact stability during laser emission is crucial. Loss of touch can lead to wrong-plane cuts. All lasers are designed to automatically monitor vacuum levels and halt laser emission upon loss of contact. Eye surgeons watch their patients during the process and might manually interrupt or pause it if difficulties arise. In laser systems with an articulated arm, surgeons can use their manual abilities to actively stabilize the laser handpiece. With a vacuum loss, treatment can be restarted after a new docking.

**Figure 6.** *Docking by femtosecond laser.*
