A system and method for performing a femto-fragmentation procedure on tissue in the crystalline lens of an eye requires that a laser beam be directed and focused to a focal point in the crystalline lens of the eye. The focal point is then guided, relative to an axis defined by the eye, to create a segment cluster by causing Laser Induced Optical Breakdown (LIOB) of tissue in the crystalline lens. The resultant segment cluster includes a plurality of contiguous, elongated segments in the crystalline lens that are individually tapered from an anterior end-area to a posterior end-area. Specifically, this is done to facilitate the removal of individual segments from the segment cluster in the crystalline lens.