Imaging-XPS/Raman investigation on the carbonization of polyimide after irradiation at 308 nm

The laser ablation of polyimide was studied using 308 nm laser irradiation 𙜡 mJ cm^-2. Confocal Raman microscopy revealed the deposition of carbon surrounding the ablation crater, which consists of amorphous carbon with some crystalline features. Inside the crater, graphitic material was detected on top of the cones, very similar to the material from cw-Ar⁺ ion laser irradiation. FT-Raman measurements reveal the presence of intermediates of the polyimide decomposition. Imaging-X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy confirmed the deposition of carbon material surrounding the ablation crater and showed that the oxygen and nitrogen contents of the remaining material decrease.     

Quantitative morphological evaluation of laser ablation on calculus using full-field optical coherence microscopy

The quantitative morphological evaluation at high resolution is of significance for the study of laser-tissue interaction. In this paper, a full-field optical coherence microscopy (OCM) system with high resolution of ∼2 μm was developed to investigate the ablation on urinary calculus by a free-running Er:YAG laser. We studied the morphological variation quantitatively corresponding to change of energy setting of the Er:YAG laser. The experimental results show that the full-field OCM enables quantitative evaluation of the morphological shape of craters and material removal, and particularly the fine structure. We also built a heat conduction model to simulate the process of laser-calculus interaction by using finite element method. Through the simulation, the removal region of the calculus was calculated according to the temperature distribution. As a result, the depth, width, volume, and the cross-sectional profile of the crater in calculus measured by full-field OCM matched well with the theoretical results based on the heat conduction model. Both experimental and theoretical results confirm that the thermal interaction is the dominant effect in the ablation of calculus by Er:YAG laser, demonstrating the effectiveness of full-field OCM in studying laser-tissue interactions.     

Influence of consecutive picosecond pulses at 532 nm wavelength on laser ablation of human teeth

The interaction of 40 ps pulse duration laser emitting at 532 nm wavelength with human dental tissue (enamel, dentin, and dentin–enamel junction) has been investigated. The crater profile and the surface morphology have been studied by using a confocal auto-fluorescence microscope (working in reflection mode) and a scanning electron microscope. Crater profile and crater morphology were studied after applying consecutive laser pulses and it was found that the ablation depth increases with the number of consecutive pulses, leaving the crater diameter unchanged. We found that the thermal damage is reduced by using short duration laser pulses, which implies an increased retention of restorative material. We observe carbonization of the irradiated samples, which does not imply changes in the chemical composition. Finally, the use of 40 ps pulse duration laser may become a state of art in conservative dentistry.     

Robust plasmonic substrates

We report on resonant infrared laser ablation of polystyrene using single 8 ps pulses at a wavelength of 3.31 μm generated by a MgO:PPLN optical parametric amplifier pumped by a Nd:YLF laser. We determined the single-pulse ablation threshold to be 0.46 J/cm², about a factor of five smaller than in previous free-electron-laser studies. Time-resolved imaging of the laser–target interaction reveals that the detailed dynamics of the ablation process begin with thermal expansion of a large volume of hot material from which a less dense plume of polymeric material evaporates. This plume disappears on a time scale of 0.75 μs and the hot polymer material recedes back into the crater from which it was expelled. Subsequently, and on a much longer time scale, structural alterations in the ablation crater continue to evolve for at least another millisecond. Our results suggest that single picosecond pulses are effective for the ablation of polymers and exhibit dynamics similar to those observed in studies using a free-electron laser.     

Crater geometry characterization of Al targets irradiated by single pulse and pulse trains of Nd:YAG laser in ambient air and water

High intensities laser pulses are capable to generate a crater when irradiating metal targets. In such condition, after each irradiation significant ablation occurs on the target surface and as a result a crater is formed. The crater characterization is very important specifically for some applications such as micromachining. In this paper, the crater formation in metal targets was studied experimentally. The planar aluminum 5052 targets were irradiated by frequency doubled (532 nm), Q-switched Nd:YAG (∼6 ns) laser beam in ambient air and distilled water. A crater was produced after each irradiation and it was characterized by an optical microscope. Different laser intensities as well as pulse trains were applied for crater formation. The effects of laser characteristics in crater geometry were examined. The depth of the craters was measured by optical microscope and the diameter (width) was characterized by processing of the crater image. The results were explained in terms of ablation threshold and plasma shielding. The results show that the crater geometry extremely depends on the laser pulse intensity, the number of laser pulses, and ambient.     

Enhancement of ablation rate and production of colloidal nanoparticles by irradiation of metals with nanosecond pulsed laser in presence of external electric field

This paper presents the results of experimental study on the effect of electric field on the ablation rate during the nanosecond pulsed laser ablation of aluminum and copper in deionized water. The effect of electric field strength on the material removal rate and its mechanisms were investigated both in the electric field parallel and perpendicular to the laser beam path schemes. The ablation rate was estimated by measuring the dimensions of craters on the target induced by laser. The crater dimensions and optical properties of the produced colloidal nanoparticles were characterized by means of optical microscopy and UV–Vis absorption spectroscopy, respectively. The results indicate that pulsed laser ablation in the presence of an electric field significantly leads to higher material removal rate. The experimental results also confirm that the crater geometry extremely depends on the direction of the electric field with respect to the laser beam direction. The UV–Vis spectra show that the nanoparticles production efficiency increases with increasing the electric field strength.     

Studies of craters’ dimension for long-pulse laser ablation of metal targets at various experimental conditions

Long pulse laser shots of the PALS iodine laser in Prague have been used to obtain metal target ablation at various experimental conditions. Attention is paid mainly to the dependencies of the crater diameter on the position of minimum laser-focus spot with regard to the target surface, by using different laser wavelengths and laser energies. Not only a single one, but two minima, independently of the wavelength, of the target irradiation angle and of the target material, were recorded. Significant asymmetries, ascribed to the non-linear effects of intense laser beam with pre-formed plasma, were found, too. Estimations of ejected mass per laser pulse are reported and used to calculate the efficiency of laser-driven loading. Results on metal target ablation and crater formation at high intensities (from 2 × 10¹³ to 3 × 10¹⁶ W/cm²) are presented and compared. Crater depth, crater diameter and etching yield are reported versus the laser energy, in order to evaluate the ablation threshold fluence.     

XRD and SEM analysis of a laser-irradiated cadmium

A pulsed Nd:YAG laser (10 mJ, 12 ns, 1064 nm) was employed to study the IR irradiation effects on metallic samples of cadmium. The laser was irradiated for 100, 200, and 300 shots under a vacuum ～10^?3 Torr. The results were investigated using a Hi Tech S3000H Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) and X’pert Pro PANalytical X-ray Diffractometer (XRD). The micrographs obtained from SEM reveal that the surface morphological changes have occurred in the form of a crater. The forward expansion of plasma into an ambient gas coupled with the recondensation of the target surface results in the formation of debris. Large temperature gradients produce variations in the thermal resistance that leads to the distributed shape of the heat-affected zone. The hydrodynamic effects are apparent with a liquid flow to form the recast material around the periphery of the laser focal area. The turbulent resolidified material is formed when surface asperities are accelerated away from the liquid surface during each laser pulse due to melting followed by the thermal expansion of the liquid. The positive feed back of the repeated pulses resulted in the form of ripples. Grains appear on the surface as evidence of heterogeneous nucleation. The confirmation of the formation of these structures has been done by X-ray Diffractometer (XRD).     

Irradiation effects of CO2 laser parameters on surface morphology of fused silica

To understand the surface morphology evolution of fused silica induced by 10.6-μm CO2 laser irradiation at different parameters,this paper reports that optical microscopy,profilometry,and hydrophilicity tests are utilized to characterize the surface structure and roughness of the laser irradiated area. The results show that three typical surface morphologies and two typical hydrophilicity test images are observed at different laser powers and pulse durations. The correlations between surface temperature and surface morphology as well as hydrophilicity behaviours are presented. The different hydrophilicity behaviours are related to surface structures of the laser-induced crater and thermal diffusion area. The thermal diffusion length monotonously increases with increasing laser power and pulse duration. The crater width is almost determined by the laser beam size. The crater depth is more sensitive to the laser power and pulse duration than the crater width.     

Two localized CO₂ laser treatment methods for mitigation of UV damage growth in fused silica

Two methods:high-power,short-time,single-shot irradiation(Method A) and low-power,long-time,multi-shot irradiation(Method B) are investigated to mitigate the UV damage growth in fused silica by using a 10.6-μm CO2 laser.To verify the mitigation effect of the two methods,the laser induced damage thresholds(LIDTs) of the mitigated sites are tested with a 355-nm,6.4-ns Nd:YAG laser,and the light modulation of the mitigation sites are tested with a 351-nm continuous Nd:YLF laser.The mitigated damaged sites treated with the two methods have almost the same LIDTs,which can recover to the level of pristine material.Compared with Method A,Method B produces mitigated sites with low crater depth and weak light modulation.In addition,there is no raised rim or re-deposited debris formed around the crater edge for Method B.Theoretical calculation is utilized to evaluate the central temperature of the CO2 laser beam irradiated zone and the radius of the crater.It is indicated that the calculated results are consistent with the experimental results.     

Measurement of crater geometries after laser ablation of bone tissue with optical coherence tomography

The feasibility of measuring crater geometries by use of optical coherence tomography (OCT) is examined. Bovine shank bone on a motorized translation stage with a motion velocity of 3 mm/s is ablated with a pulsed CO2 laser in vitro. The laser pulse repetition rate is 60 Hz and the spot size on the tissue surface is 0.5 mm. Crater geometries are evaluated immediately by both OCT and histology methods after laser irradiation. The results reveal that OCT is capable of measuring crater geometries rapidly and noninvasively as compared to histology. There are good correlation and agreement between crater depth estimates obtained by two techniques, whereas there exists distinct difference between crater width estimates when the carbonization at the sides of craters is not removed.     

Two localized CO2 laser treatment methods for mitigation of UV damage growth in fused silica

Two methods：high-power,short-time,single-shot irradiation（Method A） and low-power,long-time,multi-shot irradiation（Method B） are investigated to mitigate the UV damage growth in fused silica by using a 10.6-μm CO2 laser.To verify the mitigation effect of the two methods,the laser induced damage thresholds（LIDTs） of the mitigated sites are tested with a 355-nm,6.4-ns Nd：YAG laser,and the light modulation of the mitigation sites are tested with a 351-nm continuous Nd：YLF laser.The mitigated damaged sites treated with the two methods have almost the same LIDTs,which can recover to the level of pristine material.Compared with Method A,Method B produces mitigated sites with low crater depth and weak light modulation.In addition,there is no raised rim or re-deposited debris formed around the crater edge for Method B.Theoretical calculation is utilized to evaluate the central temperature of the CO2 laser beam irradiated zone and the radius of the crater.It is indicated that the calculated results are consistent with the experimental results.     

Radiation effects on poly(methyl methacrylate) induced by pulsed laser irradiations

Poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) was irradiated using a medical UV-ArF excimer laser operating at the fundamental wavelength of 193 nm. Characterized by a beam diameter of 1.8 mm and energy of 180 mJ with a Gaussian energy profile, it operates in a single mode or at 30 Hz repetition rate. Mechanical profilometry was carried out on ablation craters in order to study the rugosity and the ablation yield in the various operative conditions. Optical transmission and reflection measurements at six wavelengths were conducted in order to characterize the optical properties of the irradiated surfaces. Measured crater depths in PMMA were lower with respect to the forecasted ones in corneal tissue, while the lateral crater aperture was maintained. The rugosity produced at the crater bottom after irradiation was about 0.3 μm, and the ablation yield was about 10¹⁵ molecules/laser pulse, while etching depth and diameter show a roughly linear dependence on the number of laser shots. These experiments constitute a base for deeper clinical investigations.     

Phase explosion induced by high-repetition rate pulsed laser

The characteristics and mechanisms of the damage to absorbing glass with high-repetition laser pulses (several kHz) are discussed. The results show that: (1) in the range of comparatively low-repetition rate, the damage is characterized by material melting and a small crater on the surface of substrate; (2) with the increase in repetition rate, a bigger and deeper crater is surrounded by re-deposition and crystalline granules originating from the cooling of vapor; and (3) the crater, surrounded by evaporation and an large number of solid particulates which is obviously the characters of phase explosion, becomes even bigger and deeper when the repetition rate is further increased. We modeled the temperature distribution in different repetition rate regime and found that heat accumulation plays a significant role in damage process. Because of the temperature dependence of damage mechanism, the temperature of the area irradiated by laser beam will ramp up with increasing the repetition rate, which triggers the melting and evaporation of dielectrics and phase explosion successively. Our results may benefit the understanding of laser-induced damage in optical materials.     

高重复频率激光脉冲光束大小对吸收玻璃损伤特征的影响

针对高重复频率对吸收性滤光片损伤问题,研究了高重复频率(kHz量级)激光脉冲的光束半径大小对吸收玻璃的形貌特征和损伤机理.研究发现在总的激光作用个数、单脉冲能量和脉冲作用频率固定时,吸收玻璃的损伤特性发生很大变化:在光束半径较大时,激光能量分散,主要损伤形貌是熔化破坏;随着光束半径的减小,激光脉冲能量变得集中,热量的累积效果变得明显,逐渐变成熔化破坏和气化破坏;当激光光束半径小到一定程度,则会由于光强过大使得介质表面发生击穿而产生激光等离子体冲击波,同时由于热量沉积的集中使光束作用中心处产生超热液体,当满足相爆炸发生的条件时,气化物、液滴和固体颗粒的混合物会向外飞溅,在损伤凹陷的周围形成气化物、液滴的冷凝区和固体颗粒溅射区. 关键词： 激光诱导损伤 高重复激光脉冲 吸收玻璃 相爆炸     

Laser irradiation effects on gold

Investigations on the laser irradiation effects on gold are explored in terms of plasma-plume dynamics and morphological and crystallographic changes. Annealed 4N gold samples were irradiated with a Q-switched Nd:YAG laser (53 mJ, 21 MW, 532 nm, and pulse width 6–8 ns) for plume dynamics using 10-ns gated fast photography. A Q-switched pulsed Nd:YAG laser (10 mJ, 1.1 MW, 1064 nm, and pulse width 9 ns) was used to irradiate the surface of the samples for morphological and crystallographic studies of laser-irradiated gold in a vacuum ～10^?3 Torr. The annealed samples were exposed to 50 shots of a Nd:YAG laser (10 mJ, 1.1 MW, 1064 nm, and pulse width 9 ns). The investigation on the plume was done by using an intensified charged-couple device ICCD-5760/IR-UV camera. The morphological investigation of the irradiated surface was carried out by analyzing micrographs obtained using an Hitachi S 3000 H scanning-electron microscope (SEM). The crystallographic studies of the irradiated samples were performed by analyzing the XRD patterns obtained using an X’ Pert Pro Pan Analytical X-ray diffractometer. The investigation on gated ICCD images of the plume reveal that, at very earlier times, the plasma-plume expansion has a linear trend, whereas, at later times, the plasma-plume expansion is nonuniform. SEM micrographs exhibit the primary mechanisms of pulsed-laser ablation (PLA), such as hydrodynamic sputtering, thermal sputtering, exfoliation sputtering, and splashing. The surface morphology was explained in terms of crater formation, swelling, burning, nucleation, grain growth, and nonsymmetric heat conduction. The nonuniform thermal expansion of gold due to thermal-energy transfer is also studied by SEM micrographs, which was supported by XRD analysis. The structural analysis on the basis of XRD shows that the composition of the irradiated samples is not disturbed even after laser irradiation. The grain sizes also changed due to laser irradiation.     

Formation of cavitation-induced pits on target surface in liquid-phase laser ablation

It is well known that a crater is formed on the target surface by the irradiation of intense laser pulses in laser ablation. In this work, we report that additional pits are formed on the bottom surface of the ablation crater due to the collapse of a cavitation bubble in liquid-phase laser ablation. We observed the formation of several cavitation-induced pits when the fluence of the laser pulse used for ablation was approximately 5 J/cm². The number of cavitation-induced pits decreased with the laser fluence, and we observed one or two cavitation-induced pits when the laser fluence was higher than 10 J/cm². In addition, we examined the influence of the liquid temperature on the formation of cavitation-induced pits. The collapse of the cavitation bubble was not observed when the liquid temperature was close to the boiling temperature, and in this case, we found no cavitation-induced pits on the bottom surface of the ablation crater. This experimental result was discussed by considering the cavitation parameter.     

Experimental investigation of ablation efficiency and plasma expansion during femtosecond and nanosecond laser ablation of silicon

Femtosecond laser (Ti:sapphire, 100 fs pulse duration) ablation of silicon in air was compared with nanosecond laser (Nd:YAG, 3 ns pulse duration) ablation at ultraviolet wavelength (266 nm). Laser ablation efficiency was studied by measuring crater depth as a function of pulse number. For the same number of laser pulses, the fs-ablated crater was about two times deeper than the ns-crater. The temperature and electron number density of the laser-induced plasma were determined from spectroscopic measurements. The electron number density and temperature of fs-induced plasmas decreased faster than ns-induced plasmas due to different energy deposition mechanisms. Images of the laser-induced plasma were obtained with femtosecond time-resolved laser shadowgraph imaging. Plasma expansion in both the perpendicular and the lateral directions were compared. PACS 52.38.Mf; 52.30.-q     

Real-time optodynamic monitoring of pulsed laser decoating rate

This paper deals with a laser-cleaning process for removing a layer of paint. The effects of each individual laser pulse were monitored by a three-probe system. Ultrasonic signals from the rear surface of the substrate were obtained using an arm compensated Michelson interferometer, the optoacoustic waves in the surrounding air were detected using a laser beam deflection probe and the shape of the growing crater was measured using a laser anamorph profilometer. Two different cleaning lasers were used: an Excimer and a Nd:YAG laser. Typical parameters of the optodynamic signals versus the laser-pulse number are presented. A linear correlation between the quantity of ablated material and the integral of the ultrasonic signals was found together with an exponential relationship between the time-of-flight of the optoacoustic signals and the decoating rate.     

Laser ablation of copper and aluminium in air

The ablation behavior of copper alloy and aluminium irradiated in air by 1.06 m, 10 ns pulsed laser with power density of 6.4×10⁹W/cm² was studied using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), MCS-RBS and X-ray microanalysis. Evidence of bulk vaporization via bubble formation was observed for the copper alloy under the laser irradiation. Silver-enrichment microregions were found in the ablation crater created by the laser shots on the copper alloy sample. Material removal rates of these materials were determined by crater shape-profile measurement. Using self-similar solutions of the gas-dynamic equations, gas-dynamic parameters of the vaporization waves are obtained. These parameters are used to calculate material removal rates and impulse coupling coefficients of these materials under the pulsed laser irradiation. The calculated mass removal rates and the coupling coefficients are compared with the corresponding experimentally determined values. The surface kinetic energy of the irradiated area on the Al sample is estimated. Possible mechanisms for laser ablation of the materials under study are discussed.