Computer modeling of dissociative gas adsorption on laser-roughened surfaces

A simple computer model of dissociative adsorption of diatomic molecules on a solid surface with laser-induced defects was proposed. The defects (ablation craters) were assumed to have either cubicoid or pyramidal shape, depending on the approximation level. Special attention was paid to the influence of a degree of structural disorder on the adsorptive properties of the surface. In particular, both equilibrium adsorption isotherms and temperature programmed desorption (TPD) spectra of non-interacting diatomic molecules from the surfaces subjected to a different number of laser pulses were simulated. The observed changes in the adsorptive properties of the surface were explained using simple geometric arguments linking the adsorption probability for a single molecule with the topography of the surface. For example, it was demonstrated that, for a sufficiently large number of laser pulses (N), the adsorption probability scales with , regardless of the assumed crater shape. The obtained results also indicate that, in general, the surface roughness greatly affects the TPD spectra while it has minor influence on the shape of the adsorption isotherms.     

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.     

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.     

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.     

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.     

Femtosecond pulse laser-induced self-organized nanostructures on the surface of ZnO crystal

This paper reports self-organized nanostructures observed on the surface of ZnO crystal after irradiation by a focused beam of a femtosecond Ti：sapphire laser with a repetition rate of 250kHz. For a linearly polarized femtosecond laser, the periodic nanograting structure on the ablation crater surface was promoted. The period of self-organization structures is about 180 nm. The grating orientation is adjusted by the laser polarization direction. A long range Bragglike grating is formed by moving the sample at a speed of 10μm/s. For a circularly polarized laser beam, uniform spherical nanoparticles were formed as a result of Coulomb explosion during the interaction of near-infrared laser with ZnO crystal.     

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.     

表面状态对强流脉冲电子束辐照诱发金属表面熔坑的影响

 为了考察材料晶体学特性对表面熔坑形成机制的影响,利用强流脉冲电子束（HCPEB）对喷丸前、后的304奥氏体不锈钢进行表面辐照处理,对HCPEB诱发的表面熔坑形貌进行了详细的表征。实验结果表明,HCPEB辐照后样品表面形成了大量的火山状熔坑,熔坑数密度和熔坑尺寸随电子束能量的增加而减小,材料表面的杂质或夹杂物容易成为熔坑的核心,并在熔坑形成的喷发过程中被清除,起到净化表面的作用。此外,喷丸前、后样品表面熔坑数密度遵循相似的分布规律,喷丸处理使熔坑数密度显著增大,表明材料的晶体学特性对表面熔坑形成有重要的影响,晶界、位错等结构缺陷是熔坑形核的择优位置。     

Femtosecond laser induced submicrometer structures on the ablation crater walls of II-VI semiconductors in water

Femtosecond laser ablations (100 fs, 800 nm, 0.2 mJ/pulse) were performed to produce craters on CdS, ZnS:Cu and ZnSe wafers in water. On the surface of the crater walls, a variety of submicrostructural formations were presented, such as the ripples and network structures for CdS, the subwavelength ripples and columnar structures for ZnS:Cu, even the regular cubic-shaped submicron rods for ZnSe. Based on the field-emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM) study of the different characteristic surface morphologies, the possible formation mechanisms were discussed correspondingly. For example, two distinct mechanisms are contributing to the different styles of ripples formed on CdS and ZnS:Cu. The former is the interference effects between the incoming laser beam and scattered surface wave, while the latter is the self-organization structure formation. In addition, the re-crystallization of the water-confined hot plasma would play an important role in the formation of ZnS:Cu column structures and ZnSe rods.     

飞秒激光诱导硒化锌晶体表面自组织生长纳米结构

 以250 kHz高重复频率钛宝石飞秒激光聚焦到硒化锌晶体表面,利用扫描电子显微镜观测飞秒激光辐照后晶体的表面结构。发现线偏振激光辐照的区域形成了自组织周期性纳米结构,其周期为160 nm左右,并且可以通过改变激光的偏振方向调节纳米光栅结构的取向;当晶体相对于激光光束以10 mm/s速度移动,经激光扫描后,在晶体表面形成了长程类布拉格光栅。当飞秒激光光束为圆偏振光时,辐照区域形成均匀的纳米颗粒。     

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-induced local dehydroxylation on surface-oxidized silicon substrates: mechanistic aspects and prospects in nanofabrication

Processing of silicon oxide surfaces with a focused laser beam at a wavelength of 514 nm has been investigated. Laser processing of native silicon samples (d _ox=1–2 nm) allows the fabrication of reactive templates with laterally varying hydroxyl group density. Very similar results were also obtained on thermally oxidized silicon samples (d _ox≈100 nm), whereas respective experiments on quartz plates have failed. These results support a photothermal mechanism where laser irradiation causes a local temperature rise and initiates dehydroxylation. In agreement with a photothermally induced dehydroxylation reaction, a thermokinetic analysis of the experimental data points to a highly activated process. In conjunction with site-selective functionalization routines this opens up an avenue towards functional surface structures with lateral dimensions significantly below the optical diffraction limit.     

Molecular dynamics study of the equilibrium flux of gas molecules to a fractal/rough surface: Effects of gas atom diameter

The frequency of collisions of ideal gas molecules (argon) with a rough surface has been studied. The rough/fractal surface was created using the random deposition technique. By applying various depositions the surface roughness was controlled and, as a measure of irregularity, the fractal dimensions of the surfaces were determined. The surfaces were next immersed in ideal gas and the numbers of collisions with these surfaces were counted. The calculations were carried out using the simplified molecular dynamics simulation technique (only hard core repulsions were assumed). The calculations were performed for various ratios of gas phase atoms diameter to the surface substrate atoms diameter. The results obtained showed that the size of a gas phase atom has crucial influence on the relation between the frequency of collision and the surface fractal dimension     

Morphological and mechanical investigations of bariumalumoborosilicate glass surfaces processed with 700-fs laser pulses

We present surface micro-modifications of bariumalumoborosilicate glasses with a high transformation temperature near 700 °C. Laser processing of the glass substrate was realized by using ultra-short laser pulses at 800 nm. The morphological conversion of the laser-treated surfaces was characterized by scanning force microscopy and nano-indentation. A hardness increase by at least a factor of six on the laser ablation crater edge relative to illuminated non- ablated areas shows that the material in the crater walls underwent drastic morphological and mechanical changes. In this heat- and shock-affected zone, the material became more elastic as a result of increased stress.     

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.     

Footprint organization of chiral molecules on metallic surfaces

We study the behavior of chiral molecules adsorbed on clean metallic surfaces using a lattice-gas model and Monte Carlo simulation. The aim is to model and simulate the structure (footprints and organization) formed by molecules on the surface as they adsorb. The model, which is applicable to chiral species like S- and R-alanine, or similar, discloses the conditions to generate different ordered phases that have been observed in experiments by other authors.In our model, each enantiomer may adsorb in two different configurations (species) and several effects are taken into account: inhibition, blockage of neighboring adsorptive sites (steric effects) and promotion of sites representing, in some sense, modifications in the surface properties due to molecule-surface interactions. These adsorption rules are inspired by the enantiomeric character of adsorbed species. We perform a systematic study of the different phases formed in order to qualitatively understand the mechanism for the formation of adsorbate structures experimentally found by other authors.     

Theoretical and experimental analysis of high power diode laser (HPDL) hardening of AISI 1045 steel

Laser surface hardening makes use of the rapid and cooling cycles produced on metals surfaces exposed to a scanning laser beam without affecting the bulk of the sample. Mechanical and chemical properties of the surface can be enhanced through the metallurgical transformations that take place during the mentioned thermal cycles. Steels and cast irons are the usual materials to be hardened by laser and recently the high power diode lasers (HPDL) became the appropriate tool to carry out this process. In this work, some systematic experiments have been carried out to harden AISI 1045 surface samples by a cw (HPDL) working at different power levels (470, 760 W). The main processing parameters (scanning velocity and density power of the laser beam) were tuned from the prediction realized by the numerical (ANSYS) analysis of the heat conduction involved in the process. Such analysis allowed us to put in evidence the variation of the temperature and the cooling rate of the steel sample surface, affecting the uniformity of the demanding mechanical properties of the surface. In this way, a close-loop temperature control of the surface was justified in order to keep the hardness value within the range required. The formation of martensite phase in the laser treated superficial zone confirmed the hardening of the steel.     

Waveguide properties and optical switching of prism-coupled Au:SiO2 nanocomposite films

In this study, we present theoretical and experimental analyses on the waveguide mode properties of prism-coupled Au:SiO₂ nanocomposite films with the near infrared laser of 1550 nm wavelength where the optical absorption diminished enough for the generation of guided mode. The evolution of guided mode in the nanocomposite waveguide and its propagation properties were also evaluated. As an effective way of utilizing the surface plasmon resonance properties for the application to optical switching devices, we employed an attenuated total internal reflection type optical switch geometry and tested its effectiveness for the absorptive opto-functional materials system using a cross-modulation technique with 532-nm pump and 1550-nm probe beams. The index change probe beam experiences was found to be purely refractive in nature and negative in sign, presumably due to the photo-thermal effect induced in the nanocomposite film by the irradiation of pump beam.     

Multiwavelength laser light transmission of hollow optical fiber from the visible to the mid-infrared

We report on low-loss multiwavelength laser delivery of hollow optical fiber in a wide wavelength region, from the visible to the infrared. Improved methods of liquid-phase coating were used to fabricate the hollow fiber with inner films of a silver and a cyclic olefin polymer (COP) layer. The surface roughness of the silver layer was reduced dramatically by pretreatment on the inner glass surface with an SnCl2 solution. The COP layer roughness was also decreased by using an ambient atmosphere of tetrahydrofuran (THF) solvent during the COP layer formation. Owing to the smooth surfaces, hollow fiber with optimum COP film thickness for CO2 laser light simultaneously yields low losses for a Er:YAG laser and a red pilot beam. The power durability of CO2 and Er:YAG lasers, as well as the loss properties for the pilot beam, is demonstrated.     

Surface damage morphology investigations of silicon under millisecond laser irradiation

The surface damage morphologies of single crystal silicon induced by 1064 nm millisecond Nd:YAG laser are investigated. After irradiation, the damage morphologies of silicon are inspected by optical microscope (OM) and atomic force microscope (AFM). The plasma emission spectra of the damaged region are detected by the spectrometer. It is shown that surface oxidation and nitridation have occurred during the interaction of millisecond laser with silicon. In addition, the damage morphologies induced by 2 ms and 10 ns pulse width laser are compared. The damage morphology obtained by 2 ms laser is an evident crater. Three types of damage morphologies are formed at different laser energy densities. The circular concentric ripples are found surrounding the rim of the crater. The spacing of the ripples is 15 ± 5 μm. Two types of cracks are observed: linear crack and circular crack. The linear crack is observed in the center of the damaged region which propagates to the periphery of the damaged region. The circular crack is located at the rim of the crater. The damage morphology induced by 10 ns laser is surface layer damage. The periodic linear waves are generated due to the interference between the incident beam and the scattered beam. The spacing of the ripples is 1.54 μm which is close to the incident laser wavelength 1.064 μm. The linear crack is located at the center of the damaged region. Furthermore, for the same laser energy density, the dimension of the damaged region and the crater depth induced by 2 ms laser are greater than that of 10 ns laser. It indicates that the damage mechanism under millisecond pulse laser irradiation is strongly different from the case of nanosecond pulse laser.