Subsurface defect characterization and laser-induced damage performance of fused silica optics polished with colloidal silica and ceria

This paper mainly focuses on the influence of colloidal silica polishing on the damage performance of fused silica optics. In this paper, nanometer sized colloidal silica and micron sized ceria are used to polish fused silica optics. The colloidal silica polished samples and ceria polished samples exhibit that the root-mean-squared(RMS) average surface roughness values are 0.7 nm and 1.0 nm, respectively. The subsurface defects and damage performance of the polished optics are analyzed and discussed. It is revealed that colloidal silica polishing will introduce much fewer absorptive contaminant elements and subsurface damages especially no trailing indentation fracture. The 355-nm laser damage test reveals that each of the fused silica samples polished with colloidal silica has a much higher damage threshold and lower damage density than ceria polished samples. Colloidal silica polishing is potential in manufacturing high power laser optics.     

熔石英元件抛光表面的亚表面损伤研究

通过结合HF酸洗和微分干涉差显微成像对两组抛光元件的亚表面损伤进行直接观测和分析。结果显示微分干涉差显微成像相比于传统的明场成像具有更好的分辨率,可以更有效检测HF酸洗后暴露的各种浅塑性亚表面损伤。对两组抛光元件的亚表面损伤的对比分析发现熔石英元件在抛光中会产生大量的亚表面损伤,这些亚表面损伤绝大多数是浅塑性的划痕和坑,仅有少量的脆性断裂损伤,较大的抛光颗粒会产生更多更严重的亚表面损伤,并且这些亚表面损伤被表面沉积层所掩盖,表面粗糙度不能反映亚表面损伤的严重程度。     

激光诱导熔石英表面损伤修复中的气泡形成和控制研究

基于熔石英材料在CO_2激光作用下的温度分布和结构参数变化的计算结果,对熔石英损伤修复中的气泡形成和控制进行了研究.针对损伤尺寸介于150—250μm之间的损伤点,提出了一种能够有效控制气泡形成的长时间低温预热修复方法.基于低温下熔石英材料结构弛豫时间常数较长的特点,该方法在不引起熔石英材料结构发生显著变化的同时,能够解吸附表面和裂纹处所附着的气体和杂质,可有效降低裂纹闭合过程中气泡形成的概率.实验结果表明,长时间低温预热修复方法的成功修复概率可达到98%.     

抛光表面的亚表层损伤检测方法研究

光学元件磨削加工引入的亚表面损伤威胁着光学元件的使用性能及寿命,成为现阶段高能激光发展的瓶颈问题,特别是抛光表面光学元件的亚表面损伤检测已成为光学元件制造行业的研究热点和难点.本文结合光学共聚焦成像、层析技术、显微光学、光学散射以及微弱信号处理等技术,给出了基于光学共焦层析显微成像的光学元件亚表面损伤检测方法.分析了不同针孔大小对测量准确度的影响,并首次给出了亚表面损伤的纵向截面分布图.与腐蚀法比较结果显示:针对自行加工的同一片K9玻璃,采用本文提出的方法测得的亚表面损伤深度45 μm左右;采用化学腐蚀处理技术,对光学元件逐层刻蚀,观察得到的亚表面损伤深度50~55 μm.两者基本一致,进一步验证了本文采用的方法可以实现对光学元件亚表面损伤的定量、非破坏检测.     

纳秒激光诱导熔石英光学玻璃的损伤增长

利用Nd:YAG激光器研究了纳秒激光诱导熔石英光学玻璃的初始损伤及损伤增长,对比研究了损伤程度和损伤形貌随激光波长、能量密度、脉冲数及位置的变化规律,并对损伤机制进行了分析和讨论。研究结果表明:初始损伤受损伤先驱的物理化学性质和激光参数的影响,而损伤增长规律与初始损伤程度、激光参数和位置有关;后表面的损伤随脉冲数的增加呈指数关系增长,前表面则呈线性关系;裂纹的产生及其在后续脉冲辐照下的发展是后表面损伤增长的主要原因,高温等离子体表面刻蚀是前表面损伤增长的主要原因     

Incident laser modulation of a repaired damage site with a rim in fused silica rear subsurface

Local CO2 laser treatment has proved to be an effective method to prevent the 351-nm laser-induced damage sites in a fused silica surface from exponentially growing, which is responsible for limiting the lifetime of optics in high fluence laser systems. However, the CO2 laser induced ablation crater is often surrounded by a raised rim at the edge, which can also result in the intensification of transmitted ultraviolet light that may damage the downstream optics. In this work, the three-dimensional finite-difference time-domain method is developed to simulate the distribution of electrical field intensity in the vicinity of the CO2 laser mitigated damage site located in the exit subsurface of fused silica. The simulated results show that the repaired damage sites with raised rims cause more notable modulation to the incident laser than those without rims. Specifically, we present a theoretical model of using dimpled patterning to control the rim structure around the edge of repaired damage sites to avoid damage to downstream optics. The calculated results accord well with previous experimental results and the underlying physical mechanism is analysed in detail.     

光学元件亚表面缺陷的损伤性检测方法

在磨削、研磨和抛光加工过程中产生的微裂纹、划痕、残余应力等亚表面缺陷会导致熔石英元件抗激光损伤能力下降,如何快速、准确地检测亚表面损伤成为光学领域亟待解决的关键问题。采用HF酸蚀刻法、角度抛光法和磁流变斜面抛光法对熔石英元件在研磨加工中产生的亚表面缺陷形貌特征及损伤深度进行了检测和对比分析,结果表明,不同检测方法得到的亚表层损伤深度的检测结果存在一定差异,HF酸蚀刻法检测得到的亚表面损伤深度要比角度抛光法和磁流变斜面抛光法检测结果大一些。且采用的磨粒粒径越大,试件表面及亚表面的脆性断裂现象越严重,亚表面缺陷层深度越大。     

Numerical simulation of modulation to incident laser by submicron to micron surface contaminants on fused silica

Modulation caused by surface/subsurface contaminants is one of the important factors for laser-induced damage of fused silica. In this work, a three-dimensional finite-difference time-domain(3D-FDTD) method is employed to simulate the electric field intensity distribution in the vicinity of particulate contaminants on fused silica surface. The simulated results reveal that the contaminant on both the input and output surfaces plays an important role in the electric field modulation of the incident laser. The influences of the shape, size, embedded depth, dielectric constant(εr), and the number of contaminant particles on the electric field distribution are discussed in detail. Meanwhile, the corresponding physical mechanism is analyzed theoretically.     

Numerical simulation of the modulation to incident laser by the repaired damage site in a fused silica subsurface

One of the main factors of laser induced damage is the modulation to incident laser which is caused by the defect in the subsurface of the fused silica.In this work,the repaired damage site irradiated by CO 2 laser is simplified to a Gaussian rotation according to the corresponding experimental results.Then,the three-dimensional finite-difference time-domain method is employed to simulate the electric field intensity distribution in the vicinity of this kind of defect in fused silica front subsurface.The simulated results show that the modulation is notable,the E max is about 2.6 times the irradiated electric field intensity in the fused silica with the damage site (the width is 1.5 μm and depth is 2.3 μm) though the damage site is repaired by CO 2 laser.The phenomenon and the theoretical result of the annular laser enhancement existed on the rear surface are first verified effectively,which agrees well with the corresponding experimental results.The relations between the maximal electric field intensity in fused silica with defect depth and width are given respectively.Meanwhile,the corresponding physical mechanism is analysed theoretically in detail.     

酸蚀深度对熔石英三倍频激光损伤阈值的影响

 采用干涉仪和台阶仪测试蚀刻深度随时间的变化,结合材料去除速率测量,研究了HF酸蚀液对熔石英表面蚀刻的影响。测试了蚀刻后损伤阈值和表面粗糙度的变化。研究表明,熔石英表面重沉积层厚度约16 nm,亚表面缺陷层大于106 nm;重沉积层去除后损伤阈值增大,随亚表面缺陷层暴露其阈值先降低后又增加,最后趋于稳定;然而,随蚀刻时间的增加,其表面粗糙度增大。分析表明,蚀刻到200 nm能有效地提高熔石英的低损伤阈值,有利于降低初始损伤点数量和提高熔石英表面的机械强度。     

纳秒强激光诱导K9玻璃表面损伤实验

 使用脉宽约10 ns的Nd:YAG激光器,研究低加工缺陷条件下K9光学玻璃在单激光脉冲作用下的损伤形貌。利用软边光阑加长程衍射的方法实现光斑整形,利用微分干涉光学显微镜和扫描电镜对样品前后表面的损伤形貌进行观察和成像,对比研究了K9光学玻璃前后表面的损伤形貌,分析了损伤机制。研究结果显示：在红外纳秒激光辐照下,加工缺陷是K9光学玻璃产生初始损伤的主要诱因;前表面的损伤主要表现为微坑及高温等离子体产生的冲蚀变色和表面微裂纹;后表面出现了均匀的亚波长周期性光栅结构,这种周期性结构是后表面损伤增长的主要诱因。     

熔石英表面热致应力对激光损伤行为影响的研究

为了研究热致应力对光学元件损伤特性的影响,通过实验测试退火处理消除热应力和未消热应力石英基片的激光损伤特性,研究了热致应力对石英元件初始损伤阈值、损伤增长阈值以及损伤增长规律的影响.结果表明,热致应力对熔石英光学元件的初始损伤阈值有影响,初始损伤阈值随着热致应力增大而降低;热致应力会加剧激光引发的损伤增长,相同的激光通量下,表面应力越大的区域拥有越高的损伤增长因子,但损伤增长仍遵从指数增长规律.热致应力对损伤增长阈值没有明显的影响.本文的研究将为CO2激光预处理工艺能否被应用于大口径光学元件提供一个必要的技术参考.     

抑制损伤发展的CO_2激光修复技术及机理研究

熔石英表面激光损伤发展问题一直制约着激光器的运行通量。采用CO2激光在线熔融修复损伤点,修复后形成一个光滑的高斯坑,去除了损伤点中的裂纹,平滑了凹凸不平的表面,并且在紫外脉冲激光作用下,修复斑再次产生损伤的阈值高于熔石英元件的损伤生长阈值。因此CO2熔融修复技术能有效地抑制损伤发展。通过分析CO2激光作用下熔石英表面的温度分布,讨论修复坑的形成过程,确定激光参数对修复效果的影响,为寻找最佳修复参数提供理论基础。同时利用原子力显微镜(AFM)、轮廓仪细致分析损伤点和修复斑的微细结构,采用有限差分时域方法计算损伤点和修复斑周围的光强分布,探索消除裂纹和平滑表面对抑制损伤生长的作用。     

The electric field modulation by lateral crack coated with HfO2/SiO2 high reflector

High-dielectric constant multilayer coatings are commonly used on optics to increase the laser damage resistance of optics. In this work, the three-dimensional finite-difference time-domain is improved to simulate the electric field intensity distribution in the silica–hafnia multilayer coatings on fused silica subsurface with lateral crack. Results reveal that as the substrate is defect-free, the largest intensification is at the surface layer, especially in the hafnia layer. As the lateral crack appears on the subsurface of fused silica, the intensified sites are mainly located at distorted coatings layers. Dependences of peak LIEF on crack's parameters are detailed investigated. Results show that laser intensification is more sensitive to its width, and the modulation of lateral defect with silica–hafnia multilayer is greater than nodular defect as its width larger than 5λ.     

Laser-induced damage on large-aperture fused silica gratings

Two sets of laser-damage experiments on large-aperture fused silica optics have been carried out in a high-power laser facility. Severe damage has been found on the grating which presented dense craters on the front surface. This phenomenon is quite different from other fused silica optics, which are damaged on the rear surface. The damage possibility due to the redeposition layer was ruled out by acid-etching the grating’s front surface. The remarkable stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS) effect was observed in grating and the reason for the front surface damage is thought to be the backward SBS.     

超声波辅助酸蚀提高熔石英损伤阈值

为了提高熔石英元件表面抗激光损伤阈值,利用超声波辅助HF酸研究平滑光学元件表面缺陷形貌和去除刻蚀后残留物效果,通过扫描电子显微镜电镜和原子力显微镜记录表面形貌结构,以及单脉冲激光辐照测试抗损伤阈值确定实验参数。研究表明,超声波场的引入能催化HF酸的刻蚀速率、提高钝化效果并且更易剥离嵌入的亚μm级杂质粒子。经过实验测试,获得了熔石英类元件相匹配的超声辅助HF酸刻蚀实验参数,研究结果对应用超声波辅助HF酸研究熔石英表面抗激光损伤有重要意义。     

低亚表面损伤石英光学基底的加工和检测技术

制备低亚表面损伤的超光滑光学基底,是获得高损伤阈值薄膜的前提条件。针对石英材料在不同加工工序中引入亚表面损伤层的差异,首先利用共焦显微成像结合光散射的层析扫描技术,对W10和W5牌号SiC磨料研磨后的亚表面缺陷进行了检测,讨论了缺陷尺寸与散射信号强度、磨料粒径与损伤层深度间的对应关系;同时,采用化学腐蚀处理技术对抛光后样品的亚表面形貌进行了刻蚀研究,分析了化学反应生成物和亚表面缺陷对刻蚀速率的影响、不同深度下亚表面缺陷的分布特征,以及均方根粗糙度与刻蚀深度间的联系。根据各道加工工艺的不同采用了相应的亚表面检测技术,由此来确定下一道加工工序,合理的去除深度,最终获得了极低亚表面损伤的超光滑光学基底。     

Morphology and distribution of subsurface damage in optical fused silica parts: Bound-abrasive grinding

The depth and morphology of subsurface damage (SSD) in fused silica samples ground with diamond grinding wheels were investigated. The factors possibly influencing the SSD depth of ground samples were examined. The results demonstrate that the SSD depth is most responsive to diamond grit size while the processing parameters (i.e. depth of cut, feed rate, and wheel peripheral speed) have marginal effects on the SSD depth. The SSD depth decreases with the abrasive/grit size of diamond wheels and slightly diminishes with the decrease of cutting depth but little influenced by feeding rate and wheel speed. The morphology inspection shows that the density of subsurface cracks in ground fused silica samples decays exponentially with the depth from the ground surface into the bulk and the cracks vanish at a certain depth that depends on the mechanical and physical properties of samples and diamond abrasives/grits.     

基于激光近场和图像分割技术的复合波长诱导熔石英损伤实验研究

在复合波长(波长分别为1053、527、351nm)情况下,利用激光近场对熔石英样品进行损伤实验。设计了一种基于激光近场辐照的损伤阈值定义方法,并利用带有灰度抑制的分水岭标记算法对损伤图像进行损伤区域提取,通过对比损伤图像与相应光束近场能量分布,计算出损伤区域与非损伤区域临界处的光能量密度,即为熔石英样品的损伤阈值。实验结果表明,复合波长激光诱导熔石英损伤是3种波长激光共同作用的结果,但351nm激光对损伤起主要作用,初始损伤阈值为8.22J/cm2;在复合波长激光多次辐照样品的情况下,熔石英样品后表面的损伤成指数形式增长,损伤增长系数为0.59。     

熔石英紫外激光初始损伤形态分析

 采取355 nm激光脉冲辐照熔石英样品,利用Nomarski微分干涉差显微镜、原子力显微镜和扫描电子显微镜观测手段对前后表面产生的损伤点进行了观察分析。对前后表面损伤形态做出详细的描述和分类,从理论上对每种损伤类型产生的条件与机理做出推测。实验结果表明：熔石英前表面存在小麻点群损伤和星状裂纹损伤两种损伤形态,横向尺寸分别为0.8～2.5和1.0～5.5 μm;后表面存在小麻点群损伤、壳状剥离损伤和火山口3种损伤形态,损伤横向尺寸分别为0.48～1.33,4～20和12～30 μm。实验证明了1 μm尺度损伤点的产生与再沉积层密切相关。