Storing energy in lithium fluoride crystals irradiated with femtosecond laser pulses

The release of energy in the form of the light sum of thermally stimulated luminescence (TSL), stored under conditions of self-focusing and the multiple filamentation of femtosecond laser radiation during the interaction between model wide-bandgap dielectric crystals of lithium fluoride is studied. It is shown that F₂ color centers are important centers of emission in the TSL process.     

Formation of domain reversal by direct irradiation with femtosecond laser in lithium niobate

We propose that domain inversion can be directly induced by femtosecond laser both theoretically and experimentally, which opens a path to achieve three-dimensional （3D） nonlinear crystal with a period in sub-micron-scale. A simulation of domain inversion is modeled by considering the temporal distribution of femtosecond pulses. The calculation results clarify that the domain inversions can happen within or after the interaction with the laser pulse, and the response time of domain inversion is in the picosecond level depending on the intensity and the materials. The domain reversal windows of lithium niobate by femtosecond laser are observed which agrees with theoretical predictions qualitatively.     

Diffraction grating fabrication in lithium niobate and KDP crystals with femtosecond laser pulses

We report studies of the modifications induced inside lithium niobate and KDP crystals by Yb:KGW ultrafast laser pulses, having 300-fs pulse duration and operating at 100-kHz repetition rate. By focusing the laser beam with a 0.42 numerical-aperture objective, we have recorded homogeneous volume Bragg gratings in the bulk of the niobate crystal that showed excellent diffraction efficiencies, reaching up to 87%, and remained permanent after thermal annealing for one hour at 150°C. The refractive index modification level was found to be 0.002 in lithium niobate. The results show that lithium niobate is a very promising crystal candidate for microphotonics applications. On the contrary, in the KDP crystal no smoothly modified refractive index zones were created.     

Towards nanostructuring with femtosecond laser pulses

Detailed investigations of the possibilities for using femtosecond lasers for the nanostructuring of metal layers and transparent materials are reported. The aim is to develop a simple laser-based technology for fabricating two- and three-dimensional nanostructures with structure sizes on the order of several hundred nanometers. This is required for many applications in photonics, for the fabrication of photonic crystals and microoptical devices, for data storage, displays, etc. Measurements of thermionic electron emission from metal targets, which provide valuable information on the dynamics of femtosecond laser ablation, are discussed. Sub-wavelength microstructuring of metals is performed and the minimum structure size that can be fabricated in transparent materials is identified. Two-photon polymerization of hybrid polymers is demonstrated as a promising femtosecond laser-based nanofabrication technology. Received: 20 November 2002 / Accepted: 20 January 2003 / Published online: 28 May 2003 RID="*" ID="*"Corresponding author. Fax: +49-511/2788-100, E-mail: ch@lzh.de     

Formation of nanolocalized tungsten photoion packets by femtosecond laser pulses

Nanolocalized ion packets have been produced due to the transmission of photoions, which are emitted from a refractory metal emitter irradiated by femtosecond laser radiation with a high repetition rate, through a quartz nanocapillary. With the use of such a pulsed nanobeam, a miniature ion microscope has been created and the image of a dielectric-nanoaperture fragment has been obtained.     

Darkening enhancement in SK3 glass with quartz under irradiation of femtosecond laser pulses

In this paper, the femtosecond laser-induced darkening in SK3 glass is investigated. A sample with 3-mm thickness is irradiated with 200 fs laser pulses (FLP) at 800 nm wavelength and 1 kHz repetition rate. When a piece of quartz or sapphire, which does not show darkening effect under IR irradiations, is placed in front of the sample, the laser-induced darkening is enhanced. The directly darkened region in the sample gets darker on placing a piece of quartz or sapphire in front of the sample. When a piece of ULE glass that shows darkening effect by IR-FLP irradiations is placed in front of the sample, SK3 sample does not get that dark. We believe the enhancement of the darkening in SK3 glass sample by the quartz or sapphire is related to the absorption of the short wavelength component of the white light, which is generated and not absorbed in the quartz or sapphire.     

Formation of solar absorber surface on nickel with femtosecond laser irradiation

Through femtosecond (fs) laser pulse irradiation, we produce two-dimensional quasiperiodic arrays of nanostructure-covered conical microstructures (NC-CMs) on Ni. We also find that a significant amount of nickel oxide covers NC-CMs owing to the interaction of fs laser pulses with Ni in ambient air. We show that, by controlling the fluence of laser, the reflectance of the fs laser-treated Ni surface can change dramatically in the infrared but the surface still has a high absorptance at UV and visible wavelengths. Because of this unique spectral reflectance, the fs laser-treated Ni surface is well suited for use as a solar absorber surface.     

Multistep third-harmonic generation of femtosecond laser pulses in periodically-poled and chirped-periodically-poled lithium niobate

Simultaneous generation of the second and third harmonics in periodically-poled and chirped-periodically-poled lithium niobate (PPLN and CPPLN) is studied numerically taking into account mismatches and dispersions of the group velocities of interacting laser pulses. It is shown that CPPLN frequency converters can be successfully used for creating multicolor short laser pulses.     

Ultrafast temperature relaxation evolution in Au film under femtosecond laser pulses irradiation

Ultrafast temperature relaxation processes in Au film including two temperature relaxation and thermal diffusion relaxation with femtosecond laser pulse excitation were investigated numerically by Finite Element Method (FEM). With the temperature dependent thermal parameters, the full 2D temperature field evolution in picosecond and nanosecond domains were obtained. It is proposed that the heat transfer depth can be alternatively localized or enhanced by the distinct temperature relaxation mechanisms. Moreover, the effect of laser parameters and Au film thickness and surface reflectivity on the two temperature relaxation time were analysed.     

Nanostructuring with spatially localized femtosecond laser pulses

Spatially localized femtosecond pulses have been produced by a combination of scanning near-field optical microscopy with ultrashort pulse lasers. With these pulses direct ablative writing on metal surfaces is demonstrated. Possible applications of this technique for nanostructuring, repair, and production of lithographic masks are discussed.     

Formation mechanism of element distribution in glass under femtosecond laser irradiation

We report on the formation mechanism of element distribution in glass under high-repetition-rate femtosecond laser irradiation. We simultaneously focused two beams of femtosecond laser pulses inside a glass and confirmed the formation of characteristically shaped element distributions. The results of the numerical simulation in which we considered concentration- and temperature-gradient-driven diffusions were in excellent qualitative agreement with the experimental results, indicating that the main driving force is the sharp temperature gradient. Since the composition of a glass affects its refractive index, absorption, and luminescence property, the results in this study provide a framework to fabricate a functional optical device such as optical circuits with a high-repetition-rate femtosecond laser.     

Sub-100-nm laser-induced periodic surface structures upon irradiation of titanium by Ti:sapphire femtosecond laser pulses in air

The formation of laser-induced periodic surface structures (LIPSS) on titanium upon irradiation with linearly polarized femtosecond (fs) laser pulses (τ=30 fs, λ=790 nm) in an air environment is studied experimentally and theoretically. In the experiments, the dependence on the laser fluence and the number of laser pulses per irradiation spot has been analyzed. For a moderate number of laser pulses (N<1000) and at fluences between ～0.09 and ～0.35 J/cm², predominantly low-spatial-frequency-LIPSS with periods between 400 nm and 800 nm are observed perpendicular to the polarization. In a narrow fluence range between 0.05 and 0.09 J/cm², high-spatial-frequency-LIPSS with sub-100-nm spatial periods (～λ/10) can be generated with an orientation parallel to the polarization (N=50). These experimental results are complemented by calculations based on a theoretical LIPSS model and compared to the present literature.     

Irradiation of glass with infrared femtosecond laser pulses

We report a novel resistive random access memory using tri-layer dielectrics of GeO _x /nano-crystal TiO₂/TaON and low cost top Ni and bottom TaN electrodes. Excellent device performance of ultra-low 720 fJ switching energy, tight distributions of set/reset currents, and exceptionally long endurance of 5×10⁹ cycles were achieved simultaneously. Such excellent endurance may create new applications such as those used for Data Centers that are ascribed to the higher-κ nano-crystal TiO₂, hopping pass via grain boundaries, and fast switching speed of 100 ns to improve the dielectric fatigue during endurance stress.     

采用飞秒激光诱导制备彩色金属

采用脉宽为35～65 fs,中心波长为800 nm的飞秒脉冲激光对经抛光的镍片进行表面扫描处理,并在金属表面上制备了彩色镍图案;设置不同的激光扫描速度和能量密度扫描处理不锈钢表面,亦制备了彩色图案。介绍了实验过程,分析了实验结果,扫描电子显微镜(SEM)形貌分析显示,经过飞秒激光扫描处理的金属表面出现了纳米量级的激光诱导周期表面结构(NC-LIPSS),在镍上形成的结构周期约为480～510 nm,在不锈钢上形成的结构周期约为480～540 nm。     

Near-field-optical-microscopy studies of micro-modifications caused by femtosecond laser irradiation in lithium niobate crystals

Near-field-optical-microscopy has been used to study the micro-modifications caused by femtosecond laser pulses focused at the surface and in the volume of lithium niobate crystals. We have found experimental evidence of the existence, close to femtosecond ablation craters, of periodic modifications in the surface reflectivity. In addition, the potential application of near-field-optical microscopy for the spatial location of permanent modifications caused by femtosecond pulses focused inside lithium niobate crystals has been also demonstrated.     

Modeling of nonlinear responses in BK7 glass under irradiation of femtosecond laser pulses

In this paper, the nonlinear response in BK7 glass sample is investigated under irradiation of 200 fs laser pulses at 800 nm wavelength by using of transmission measurement method. Nonlinear transmission is observed for incident pulse energies above 37μJ. A theoretical model based on simultaneously absorption of one, two and three-photon absorption is presented. The contribution of free-carriers absorption is also included on the model. The differential equation is solved analytically. The experimental results and predictions of theoretical model are in good agreement. The values of three-photon absorption coefficient and free-carriers absorption cross-section are reported.     

Formation of microbumps and nanojets on gold targets by femtosecond laser pulses

Femtosecond laser-induced sub-wavelength microstructuring of a thin gold layer coated onto a quartz glass substrate is investigated. Formation of microbumps (microbubbles) and nanojets under single pulse laser irradiation is observed. Discussion of these effects and demonstration of their dependencies on the laser pulse energy and gold layer thickness are presented. PACS 42.62-b; 42.65.Re; 52.38.Mf     

Fabrication of long-period fiber gratings by focused irradiation of infrared femtosecond laser pulses

We have fabricated long-period fiber gratings by use of a novel technique using focused irradiation of infrared femtosecond laser pulses. We investigate the thermal stability of the fabricated fiber gratings. The values of the loss peak wavelength and the transmittance of the fiber gratings after heat treatment below 500 degrees C are the same as initial values before heat treatment. The fiber gratings that were fabricated by this technique have a high resistance to thermal decay. We propose that this technique will be useful for fabrication of fiber gratings with a superior aging characteristic.     

Multiple filamentation of femtosecond laser pulses

The formation of fluorescent channels with color centers in LiF crystals under the action of the multiple filamentation of femtosecond laser pulses is studied experimentally and theoretically for pulse powers around four orders of magnitude higher than the critical self-focusing value.