Multi-layered Ag film pattern printed by spatially modulated pulsed laser beam

Ag film solution-deposited on the glass source substrate was selectively transferred onto a receiver substrate by a spatially modulated pulsed ultraviolet laser beam. After printing a line pattern, an additional layer was orthogonally printed over the first layer. It was found that the thickness of the first layer is a crucial factor affecting the mechanical stability of the overall pattern. When the first layer was thicker than 0.7 μm, the second layer was cracked at the junction edges regardless of its thickness. This is attributed to the vertical elongation of the second layer at the edge areas. As long as the first layer remains below 0.7 μm thick, however, a very thick additional layer could be printed without any cracks. The printed patterns were mechanically robust and exhibited good electrical contact between the layers. The threshold pulse energy density for printing was measured to be 10 mJ/cm² and this threshold level made it possible to print over square centimeters by a single pulse.     

Study on metal microparticle content of the material transferred with Absorbing Film Assisted Laser Induced Forward Transfer when using silver absorbing layer

Absorbing Film Assisted Laser Induced Forward Transfer (AFA-LIFT) is a modified LIFT method where a high absorption coefficient thin film coating of a transparent substrate is used to transform the laser energy into kinetic in order to transfer the “target” material spread on it. This method can be used for the transfer of biomaterials and living cells, which could be damaged by direct irradiation of the laser beam. In previous experiments, ∼50-100 nm thick metal films have been used as absorbing layer. The transferred material can also contain metal microparticles originating from the absorbing thin film and acting as non-desired impurities in some cases. The aim of our work was to study how the properties (number, size and covered area) of metal particles transferred during the AFA-LIFT process depend on film thickness and the applied fluence. Silver thin films with different thickness (50-400 nm) were used as absorbing layers and real experimental conditions were modeled by a 100 μm thick water layer. The particles transferred without the use of water layer were also studied. The threshold laser fluence for the complete removal of the absorber from the irradiated area was found to strongly increase with increasing film thickness. The deposited micrometer and submicrometer particles were observed with optical microscope and atomic force microscope. Their size ranged from 100 nm to 20 μm and depended on the laser fluence. The increase in fluence resulted in an increasing number of particles of smaller average size.     

Cell patterning without chemical surface modification: Cell-cell interactions between printed bovine aortic endothelial cells (BAEC) on a homogeneous cell-adherent hydrogel

Cell printing offers the unique ability to directly deposit one or multiple cell types directly onto a surface without the need to chemically pre-treat the surface with lithographic methods. We utilize biological laser printing (BioLP^™) to form patterns of bovine aortic endothelial cells (BAECs) onto a homogeneous cell adherent hydrogel surface. These normal cells are shown to retain near-100% viability post-printing. In order to determine whether BAECs encountered shear and/or heat stress during printing, immunocytochemical staining experiments were performed to detect potential expression of heat shock proteins (HSP) by the deposited cells. Printed BAECs expressed HSP at levels similar to negative control cells, indicating that the BioLP process does not expose cells to damaging levels of stress. However, HSP expression was slightly higher at the highest laser energy studied, suggesting more stress was present under these extreme conditions. Printed BAECs also showed preferential asymmetric growth and migration towards each other and away from the originally printed pattern, demonstrating a retained ability for the cells to communicate post-printing.     

Simulation analysis of the aluminum thin film thickness measurement by using low energy electron beam

This paper indicates a simulation analysis for estimating the aluminum (Al) thin film thickness measurements by using the low energy electron beam. In order to calculate the Al thickness estimation, the energy of the incident electron beams was varied from 10 to 30 keV, while the thickness of the Al film was varied between 6 and 14 μm. From the simulation results it was found that electron transmittance fraction in 14 μm sample is about nine orders of magnitude more than 6 μm sample at the same incident electron beam energy. Simulation results show that maximum transmitted electrons versus Al layer thickness has a parabolic relation and by using the obtained equation, it is possible to estimate unknown thickness of the thin film Al layer. All calculations here were done by CASINO numerical simulation package.     

Micropatterning of fluoropolymers

Fluoropolymer (PTFE and FEP) substrates have been patterned through micro-contact printing of an aminosilane. The silane pattern was activated with a palladium catalyst that allowed the electroless deposition of copper which was used to form micropatterned copper electrodes. Conducting polymer micropatterns were then fabricated by electrodeposition of polypyrrole (PPy) onto the copper. The resulting patterns of 80 μm and 10 μm grids and 2 μm and 5 μm checkerboards were characterized using imaging XPS, TOF-SIMS, AFM and SEM. The size and resolution of the smallest copper patterns were limited by the copper grain size created during electroless deposition. The polypyrrole patterns were also limited by the roughness of the electrolytically deposited polymer film.     

Graphene-based passively Q-switched 2 μm thulium-doped fiber laser

We demonstrated stable pulses generation at 2 μm in a passively Q-switched thulium-doped fiber laser using a few layer graphene thin film. The maximum output power was 4.5 mW and the single pulse energy was 85 nJ at 53 kHz repetition rate, and the pulse width was about 1.4 μs. The pulse width and the repetition rate of the Q-switched fiber laser can be changed along with the pump power. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of graphene saturable absorber for passively Q-switched 2 μm fiber lasers.     

Laser scribing of indium tin oxide (ITO) thin films deposited on various substrates for touch panels

In this study, a Nd:YAG laser with wavelength of 1064 nm is used to scribe the indium tin oxide (ITO) thin films coated on three types of substrate materials, i.e. soda-lime glass, polycarbonate (PC), and cyclic-olefin-copolymer (COC) materials with thickness of 20 nm, 30 nm, and 20 nm, respectively. The effect of exposure time adjusted from 10 μs to 100 μs on the ablated mark width, depth, and electrical properties of the scribed film was investigated. The maximum laser power of 2.2 W was used to scribe these thin films. In addition, the surface morphology, surface reaction, surface roughness, optical properties, and electrical conductivity properties were measured by a scanning electron microscope, a three-dimensional confocal laser scanning microscope, an atomic force microscope, and a four-point probe. The measured results of surface morphology show that the residual ITO layer was produced on the scribed path with the laser exposure time at 10 μs and 20 μs. The better edge qualities of the scribed lines can be obtained when the exposure time extends from 30 μs to 60 μs. When the laser exposure time is longer than 60 μs, the partially burned areas of the scribed thin films on PC and COC substrates are observed. Moreover, the isolated line width and resistivity values increase when the laser exposure time increases.     

A study on the biological detection chip through the use of PDMS lens for the reinforcement of fluorescence receiving signal

In this study, MEMS process technology is adopted to produce microfluidic chip and PDMS lens. SU-8 thick film photo resist is coated onto silicon wafer surface in two times of spin coating, then through lithography and mold transfer technology, PDMS chip of minimal line width 100 μm and thickness 200 μm is printed. In fluorescence detection aspect, we use objective lens to couple laser optical source to optical fiber, and then have it incident to excite fluorescence sample, the excited fluorescence then passes through filter and detected by optical detector of experiment group and spectrophotometer of reference group. From the experiment result, the Hex fluorescence detection limit of the system is verified to be 1 pmol/5 μl. In addition, we have integrated PDMS lens into microfluidic chip to make generalized detection experiment, it was found that the signal measured by optical embedded type is higher than that of non-embedded type. Meanwhile, the microfluidic chip with double concave lens (135°) and10 mm PDMS focusing lens can be utilized to obtain optimal fluorescence receiving effect. The fluorescence intensity is raised by 2–3 times, and the measurement limit is lowered to 100 fmol/5 μl.     

Surface modification of a WTi thin film on Si substrate by nanosecond laser pulses

Interaction of a nanosecond transversely excited atmospheric (TEA) CO₂ laser, operating at 10.6 μm, with tungsten-titanium thin film (190 nm) deposited on silicon of n-type (1 0 0) orientation, was studied. Multi-pulse irradiation was performed in air atmosphere with laser energy densities in the range 24-49 J/cm². The energy absorbed from the laser beam was mainly converted to thermal energy, which generated a series of effects. The following morphological changes were observed: (i) partial ablation/exfoliation of the WTi thin film, (ii) partial modification of the silicon substrate with formation of polygonal grains, (iii) appearance of hydrodynamic features including nano-globules. Torch-like plumes started appearing in front of the target after several laser pulses.     

Thickness dependence of optoelectrical properties of tungsten-doped indium oxide films

Pulsed laser deposition technique is used for deposition of tungsten-doped indium oxide films. The effect of film thickness on structural, optical and electrical properties was studied using X-ray diffraction (XRD), atomic force microscopy, UV-visible spectroscopy, and electrical measurements. X-ray diffraction study reveals that all the films are highly crystalline and oriented along (2 2 2) direction and the film crystallinity increases with increase in film thickness. Atomic force microscopy analysis shows that these films are very smooth with root mean square surface roughness of ∼1.0 nm. Bandgap energy of the films depends on thickness and varies from 3.71 eV to 3.94 eV. It is observed that resistivity of the films decreases with thickness, while mobility increases.     

Influence of Co:Cu ratio on properties of Co–Cu films deposited at different conditions

A series of Co–Cu films with different Co:Cu ratio was electrodeposited at different electrolyte pH, deposition potential and film thickness, and their morphology, crystal structure and magnetic properties were investigated. Compositional analysis by energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy disclosed that the Co and Cu content were 75 and 25 wt%, respectively, at high pH (3.2) level, while for films at low pH (2.5) level the compositions are 61 Co and 39 wt% Cu, and further decrease of Co:Cu ratio occurred as the film thicknesses increased. The surface morphology of the films changed from an initial dendritic stage to expanded dendrites with increasing Cu content by the electrolyte pH. The dendrites became more obvious at 3 μm and the dendritic structures increased with further increase of film thickness as the Co:Cu ratio decreased. Hence, the increase of the Cu content is thought to be the cause of the increase of dentritic structure. Structural characterizations by x-ray diffraction (XRD) showed that all films have face-centered cubic structure. In the XRD patterns, the peak intensity of Co (111) is lower for the films grown at low pH compared to that of high pH, and the (111) peaks of Co and Cu slightly separated at 3 μm and then the intensity of the Cu (111) increased with increasing film thickness from 4 to 5 μm, so that the Co:Cu ratio changed at all deposition parameters. Magnetic measurements displayed that the saturation magnetization decreased and the coercivity increased as the Co:Cu ratio decreased with all deposition parameters. Also, the magnetic easy axis was found to be in the film plane for all films. It was seen that the variations in the properties of the films might be attributed to the change of Co:Cu ratio caused by the deposition parameters.     

Low temperature ITO thin film deposition on PES substrate using pulse magnetron sputtering

Experiments were conducted using pulse magnetron sputtering (PMS) to deposit transparent conducting indium tin oxide (ITO) thin film onto flexible polyethersulfone (PES) plastic substrates. The thin film microstructure, optoelectronic and residual stress were analyzed using the modulating PMS power, work pressure, pulse frequency, duty cycle and cycle time process parameters. The residual stress of the thin film was determined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) combined with the Sony equation. The experimental results show that PMS has a lower process temperature, higher deposition rate and lower resistivity compared with the radio frequency process at the same output power. The duty cycle increase produces the optimum optoelectronic characteristics. When the pressure, power, duty cycle and sputter time are increased, the thin film stress will also increase, causing flexural distortion in the PES plastic substrate. When the deposition thickness reaches 1.5 μm, ITO thin film will appear with a distinct split. Under 5 mtorr work pressure, 60 W power, 33 μs duty time and 2 μs pulse reverse time at duty cycle 95%, thin film with an optimized electrical 3.0 × 10⁻⁴ Ω-cm, RMS surface roughness of 0.85 nm and visible region optical transmittance will be achieved with acquisition of over 85%.     

Towards the synthesis of MAX-phase functional coatings by pulsed laser deposition

Pulsed laser deposition with a Nd:YAG laser was used to grow thin films from a pre-synthesized Ti₃SiC₂ MAX-phase formulated ablation target on oxidized Si(1 0 0) and MgO(1 0 0) substrates. The depositions were carried out in a substrate temperature range from 300 to 900 K, and the pressure in the deposition chamber ranged from vacuum (10⁻⁵ Pa) to 0.05 Pa Argon background pressure. The properties of the films have been investigated by Rutherford backscattering spectrometry for film thickness and stoichiometric composition and X-ray diffraction for the crystallinity of the films. The silicon content of the films varied with the energy density of the laser beam. To suppress especially the silicon re-sputtering from the substrate, the energy of the incoming particles must be below a threshold of 20 eV. Therefore, the energy density of the laser beam must not be too high. At constant deposition energy density the film thickness depends strongly on the background pressure. The X-ray diffraction measurements show patterns that are typical of amorphous films, i.e. no Ti₃SiC₂ related reflections were found. Only a very weak TiC(2 0 0) reflection was seen, indicating the presence of a small amount of crystalline TiC.     

Passive Q-switching of short-length Tm-doped silica fiber lasers by polycrystalline Cr:ZnSe microchips

We demonstrate passive Q-switching of short-length double-clad Tm³⁺-doped silica fiber lasers near 2 μm pumped by a laser diode array (LDA) at 790 nm. Polycrystalline Cr²⁺:ZnSe microchips with thickness from 0.3 to 1 mm are adopted as the Q-switching elements. Pulse duration of 120 ns, pulse energy over 14 μJ and repetition rate of 53 kHz are obtained from a 5-cm long fiber laser. As high as 530 kHz repetition rate is achieved from a 50-cm long fiber laser at ∼10-W pump power. The performance of the Q-switched fiber lasers as a function of fiber length is also analyzed.     

Fiber laser annealing of nanocrystalline PZT thick film prepared by aerosol deposition

Nanocrystalline PZT thick films (1 mm square and over 10 μm thick) directly deposited onto stainless-steel substrates (PZT/SUS) by aerosol deposition (AD) technique and then annealed using focused laser beam with a fiber laser to suppress thermal damage to the back sides of the PZT/SUS and substrate near the film edge and to retain the dielectric and/or ferroelectric properties of the PZT/SUS. Compared with CO₂ laser annealing, fiber laser annealing suppressed thermal damage to the substrate. Compared with PZT/SUS annealed at 600 °C using an electric furnace, PZT/SUS annealed at 600 °C using a fiber laser showed superior properties, namely, dielectric constant ? > 1200 at a frequency of 100 Hz, remanent polarization P_r > 30 μC/cm², and coercive field strength E_c < 50 kV/cm at a frequency of 10 Hz. Furthermore, the grain growth for the PZT/SUS formed by AD technique and annealed by fiber laser irradiation was occurred within the laser spot size.     

Pulsed inductive discharge CO2 laser

A pulsed inductive discharge CO₂ laser with a wavelength of 10.6 μm has been created for the first time. The excitation system of a cylindrical pulsed inductive discharge (pulsed inductively coupled plasma) in the gas mixture of CO₂:N₂:He was developed. The temporal and energy parameters of the laser radiation were investigated. The maximum inductive discharge CO₂ laser radiation energy of 104 mJ was achieved. An average power of 3.2 W was obtained at laser generation energy of 65 mJ and pulse repetition rate of 50 Hz. In the cross-section, the laser radiation had the ring shape with an external diameter of 34 mm and thickness of 4-5 mm. The measured divergence of laser radiation was 12 mrad.     

Study of the laser-induced forward transfer of liquids for laser bioprinting

Laser-induced forward transfer (LIFT) is a direct-writing technique that allows printing patterns of diverse materials with a high degree of spatial resolution. In conventional LIFT a small fraction of a solid thin film is vaporized by means of a laser pulse focused on the film through its transparent holder, and the resulting material recondenses on the receptor substrate. It has been recently shown that LIFT can also be used to transfer materials from liquid films. This widened its field of application to biosensors manufacturing, where small amounts of biomolecules-containing solutions have to be deposited with high precision on the sensing elements. However, there is still little knowledge on the physical processes and parameters determining the characteristics of the transfers.In this work, different parameters and their effects upon the transferred material were studied. It was found that the deposited material corresponds to liquid droplets which volume depends linearly on the laser pulse energy, and that a minimum threshold energy has to be overcome for transfer to occur. The liquid film thickness was varied and droplets as small as 10 μm in diameter were obtained. Finally, the effects of the variation of the film to substrate distance were also studied and it was found that there exists a wide range of distances where the morphology of the transferred droplets is independent of this parameter, what provides LIFT with a high degree of flexibility.     

Application of clean laser transfer for porphyrin micropatterning

Blister-based laser-induced forward transfer is proposed as a promising tool for clean, cold and liquid-free local transfer of various organic substances. The feature of the given technique is non-destructive local deformation of an absorbing metal film on a transparent support avoiding the metal sputtering. Application of the blister-based laser transfer of a Langmuir film to fabricate mesotetraphenylporphyrin micropatterns on a silica substrate has been demonstrated. The metal film thickness is found to be a key parameter, which determines the laser fluence range allowing the clean transfer, predominant mechanism of the blister formation and laser-induced heating of the transferred material. According to the numerical modelling confirmed by UV-vis absorption spectroscopy, the target with 1.5 μm thick titanium film provides negligible heating of the porphyrin transferred by 5 ns laser pulses.     

Laser sintering of Cu paste film printed on polyimide substrate

We here show that highly conductive copper films are obtainable from Cu paste by laser sintering. The Cu paste synthesized using an organo-metallic compound was screen-printed onto polyimide substrate and the printed films were scanned by an ultraviolet laser beam at 355 nm under nitrogen atmosphere. Very compact microstructure was observed throughout the whole thickness and the sintered films were mechanically robust. Although Cu is known susceptible to oxidation, no Cu oxides were incorporated into the film during laser sintering. An electrical resistivity of 1.86 × 10⁻⁵ Ω cm was obtained. This resistivity is several orders of magnitude lower than those reported for the copper nanoparticle paste thermally sintered under N₂ or H₂ atmosphere.     

Influence of the hydrothermal temperature and pH on the crystallinity of a sputtered hydroxyapatite film

Hydroxyapatite (HA) was coated onto titanium substrates using radio frequency sputtering, and the sputtered films were crystallized under hydrothermal conditions at 110-170 °C at pH values of 7.0 and 9.5. The crystallite size, the remnant film thickness, and the surface morphology of the films were observed using X-ray diffraction, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy, respectively.The crystallite size increased with the process temperature, and reached 123.6 nm (pH 9.5 and 170 °C) after 24 h. All of the crystallite sizes of the film treated at pH 9.5 were higher than those treated at pH 7.0 at each process temperature. The film treated at pH 9.5 retained more than 90% of the initial film thickness at any process temperature. The ratio of the film treated at pH 7.0 did not reached 90% at less than 150 °C, and tended to increase with the process temperature.