The energy of the erbium: YAG laser (2.940-nm wave-length) can be used for minimally traumatic photoablation due to its high absorption at the tissue water and its consequently low penetration depth. Laser sclerostomy ab externo, an application of this principle, has undergone advanced clinical investigation. Another potential application is photofragmentation of the lens for cataract extraction. A laboratory model Er: YAG laser (flashlamp-pumped. 200-microseconds pulse length, 5-Hz repetition frequency) was coupled to a short low-OH quartz fiber (400 microns in diameter). The laser energy was applied by direct contact of the fiber tip to human lenses with very dense cataract. The lenses rested in a small cuvette filled with an aqueous-humor-analogous fluid. The fragmentablation rate was evaluated in relation to the number of pulses and the pulse energy. A laser-triggered flash-photography unit was engaged to visualize the ablation dynamics. We found tissue-ablation rates to range from 4 to 19 micrograms/pulse, depending on the nucleus density and ulse energy. The maximal size of the removed fragments was always below 500 microns. During ablation, rapidly increasing and collapsing cavitation bubbles were photographed at the distal tip of the application fiber. The impact radius of these cavitation effects markedly exceeded the pure penetration depth of laser radiation at a 2.9-microns wavelength. A clinical application of the method should be possible as judged by the results obtained for tissue-ablation rate and fragment size. Cavitation-bubble dynamics seems to be responsible for the high fragmentation efficiency. Special application probes have to be developed to optimize ablation and to prevent inadvertent destruction of the posterior lens capsule by cavitation effects.