Femtosecond evolution of electronic interactions at the Ni(111) surface

We used time-resolved photoemission spectroscopy to measure the changes in electron self energy for the occupied surface resonance near the surface Brillouin zone center of Ni/W(110) single crystalline films following optical excitations with a fs laser pulse. Binding energy and lifetime display pronounced variations on a 100 fs time scale. We provide evidence that this is directly linked to the laser induced population of electronic levels. PACS 73.20.-r; 73.50.Gr; 78.47.+p; 79.60.Bm     

热物性参量对飞秒激光烧蚀金属影响的分子动力学模拟

利用结合双温模型的分子动力学模拟方法,研究了飞秒激光与金属相互作用的烧蚀机制.采用中心波长为800 nm,能量密度从0.043 J·cm~(-2)到0.40 J·cm~(-2)不等,脉宽分别为70 fs和200 fs的激光烧蚀金属镍和铝材料.靶材的温度、原子位型以及内部压力随时间的演化展示了材料热物性参量特性和激光参量对烧蚀结果的影响.结果显示材料电子热传导率对飞秒脉宽激光下的影响仍然较大;对比铝和镍的结果可知,铝的电子晶格耦合系数比镍的小,故电子晶格间的温度梯度持续时间较长;铝的电子热传导系数比镍的大,所以材料上下表面电子温度耦合的时间缩短.铝薄膜表面在能量密度为0.40 J·cm~(-2)激光烧蚀下呈现纳米尺寸的晶体结构.     

Laser ablation of polymers using 395 nm and 790 nm femtosecond lasers

We compared a Ti:sapphire fs laser (790 nm) with a second harmonics (395 nm) fs laser, and then mixed them for ablating polyethylene (PE). Compared to the 790 nm fs laser, the 395 nm fs laser harmonics could etch PE faster. However, isolated carbon was formed on the ablated surface, in addition to C=O and C=C-H bonds. When we mixed a faint beam of the 395 nm fs laser harmonics with the 790 nm fs laser, the etching depth became even deeper. Moreover, the chemical composition of the ablated surface remained unchanged. At a total laser fluence of 80 mJ/cm², the most suitable laser fluences for the 395 nm fs laser harmonics and the 790 nm fs laser were found to be approximately 2 and 78 mJ/cm² respectively. PACS 81.65.Cf     

Polarized reflectance of aluminum and nickel to 532, 355 and 266 nm Nd:YAG laser beams for varying surface finish

Polarized reflectances of Al and Ni treated by two types of surface finish, namely lapping and electro-polishing, for 532, 355, and 266 nm wavelength laser beams, are measured and compared with the theoretical polarized reflectance. For metals treated by lapping, there exists a distinct trend coming from the surface directionality that results from the mechanical surface finish. The reflectance for the case where the surface directionality is parallel to the electric field of incident beam is higher than the case where surface directionality and electric field are perpendicular to each other. This trend is not observed in metals treated by electro-polishing having no surface directionality. Our studies provide reference to the surface finish effects on the reflectance of Al and Ni for various wavelength beams, providing insight into the improvement of laser processing efficiency by adjusting surface directionality of metals and polarization of beam.     

Femtosecond laser-induced surface wettability modification of polystyrene surface

In this paper, we demonstrated a simple method to create either a hydrophilic or hydrophobic surface. With femtosecond laser irradiation at different laser parameters, the water contact angle (WCA) on polystyrene’s surface can be modified to either 12.7° or 156.2° from its original WCA of 88.2°. With properly spaced micro-pits created, the surface became hydrophilic probably due to the spread of the water droplets into the micro-pits. While with properly spaced micro-grooves created, the surface became rough and more hydrophobic. We investigated the effect of laser parameters on WCAs and analyzed the laser-treated surface roughness, profiles and chemical bonds by surface profilometer, scanning electron microscope (SEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). For the laser-treated surface with low roughness, the polar (such as C—O, C=O, and O—C=O bonds) and non-polar (such as C—C or C—H bonds) groups were found to be responsible for the wettability changes. While for a rough surface, the surface roughness or the surface topography structure played a more significant role in the changes of the surface WCA. The mechanisms involved in the laser surface wettability modification process were discussed.     

Laser surface texturing of gray cast iron for improving tribological behavior

Laser surface texturing process involves creation of microfeatures, e.g., tiny dimples, usually distributed in a certain pattern, covering only a fraction of the surface of the material that is being treated. The process offers several advantages for tribological applications, including improved load capacity, wear resistance, lubrication lifetime, and reduced friction coefficient. In the present study, the surface modification of gray cast iron, using millisecond (λ = 1,064 nm), nanosecond (λ = 1,064 nm) and femtosecond (λ = 800 nm) pulse duration laser irradiation, is adopted to establish a particular geometrical pattern with dimple features and dimensions, to improve wear and friction behavior. The effect of various laser processing parameters, including laser pulse energy, pulse duration and processing speed, on the performance characteristics of the laser-treated samples is investigated. The microtextured surfaces were produced on gray cast iron using different millisecond (0.5 ms), nanosecond (40 ns) and femtosecond (120 fs) laser source with the dimple depth between 3 and 15 μm. The coefficient of friction for the untextured surface was ~0.55, millisecond laser textured ~0.31, nanosecond laser textured ~0.02 and femtosecond laser ~0.01, under normal force of 50 N and sliding speed of 63 mm/s. Surface texturing of the gray cast iron surface using femtosecond pulse duration resulted in significant improvement in wear resistance in comparison to the untextured as well as millisecond and nanosecond laser-textured surface.     

Infrared femtosecond laser-induced great enhancement of ultraviolet luminescence of ZnO two-dimensional nanostructures

Two-dimensional (2D) complex nanostructures on the surface of ZnO crystal are fabricated by the interference of three 800 nm fs laser beams. The 2D nanostructures exhibit a great enhancement of UV emission excited by infrared fs laser with central wavelengths ranging from 1,200 nm to 2,000 nm. We propose that the defect states in the band gap of 2D nanostructures induced by 800 nm fs laser ablation cause the great enhancement of UV emission. We make theoretical calculations and explain well with the experimental results.     

Femtosecond laser processing of nitride-based thin films to improve their tribological performance

The ability of femtosecond laser pulses to pattern coated tribological surfaces in order to improve their wear behavior was investigated. Experiments were performed with a Ti:sapphire laser (wavelength: 800 nm, energy density: 2 J/cm², pulse duration: 100 fs) on TiN- and on TiCN-coated surfaces. Morphological analyses of the laser-treated surfaces were carried out and did not reveal any film delamination or other coating damage after laser processing. Tribological tests simulating rapidly increasing contact pressures under boundary friction were performed on both unpatterned and laser-patterned coated surfaces using a steel counter body. The patterned surfaces showed significantly better tribological performance with respect to stability and the value of the friction coefficient during testing. EDX analyses of the tested unpatterned samples revealed complete coating removal and material transfer from the counter body to the sample surface. In the case of the laser-patterned surfaces, only slight coating damage and an accumulation of debris from the steel counter body in the laser-induced pores were observed. PACS 42.62.Cf; 81.40.Wx     

Dynamics of laser desorption and ablation of metals at the threshold on the femtosecond time scale

The dynamics of the laser-ablation (-desorption) process of metals (Al, Ag, Fe, and Ni) initiated by 30 fs laser pulses has been investigated by interferometric time-resolved pump-probe measurements. It is postulated that a sufficiently high density of hot electrons is essential for achieving desorption of metal ions. In addition, we have observed a new and unexpected behavior characterized by delayed ablation for a pump-probe beam delay in the range of several ps for Al, Ni, and Fe. This second peak is attributed to the development of a liquid surface layer developing after a few ps. Molecular dynamics simulations support this assumption.     

Subpicosecond time resolved ablation studies of submicrometer gratings on metals and semiconductors

Time-resolved studies on the ablation of metals (Ni, Ag, Au, Cu) and semiconductors (Ge, Si) by short UV laser pulses (500 fs at 248 nm) are presented. Submicron-period grating structures were created on the sample surface by UV pump pulses and the diffracted signals (0^th, 1^st, 2^nd order) of a weak probe pulse (500 fs at 496 nm) were recorded as a function of pump-probe delay. These signals provide direct information about electronic excitations, phase transitions and the onset of material removal.     

Laser irradiation of AISI 316L stainless steel coated with Si3N4 and Ti

AISI 316L stainless steel was laser surface treated with different compositions of Si₃N₄ and Ti under various laser-processing parameters to improve its surface hardness through reinforcement of Ti-based silicides. The laser-treated regions exhibited improved surface hardness (250–1000 HV), variations in the surface morphology (smooth and bowl like) and presence of cracks and pores depending upon the Si₃N₄–Ti composition and laser-processing parameters. The study shows that when the Si₃N₄–Ti composition is 75–25 wt% and laser parameters are 1.5 kW laser power and 1.0 m min⁻¹ scan speed, a laser-treated region with high hardness of about 800 HV and smooth surface morphology as well as free from pores and cracks is observed. The X-ray diffractometer (XRD) and Energy-Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS) analyses show that the laser surface-treated region has reinforced phase of Ti₅Si₃ and retained austenitic structure. The reinforced phase gives rise to very high hardness (or wear resistance) and also a corrosion resistance.     

Selective metallization of photostructurable glass by femtosecond laser direct writing for biochip application

We report the selective metallization of photostructurable glass by femtosecond (fs) laser direct writing followed by electroless copper (Cu) plating. It was found that a Cu thin film can be deposited only on the rough surface of glass ablated by the fs laser. The deposited Cu thin film exhibits strong adhesion and excellent electrical properties. A Cu film can even be deposited on the internal wall of a hollow microchannel inside photostructurable glass by the multiphoton absorption of the fs laser. To show the use of this technique for micro-total-analysis-system (μ-TAS) applications, the fabrication of a microheater operating at temperatures up to 200 °C was demonstrated. PACS 81.05.Kf; 85.40.Ls; 87.85.Va     

Femtosecond laser-induced nanostructure-covered large-scale waves on metals

Through femtosecond (fs) laser pulse irradiation (pulse duration: 65 fs, central wavelength: 800 nm, and repetition rate: 250 Hz), we investigate the morphological evolution of fs laser-induced periodic surface structure on Au and Pt, called a nanostructure-covered large-scale wave (NC-LSW) with a period of tens of microns, densely covered by iterating stripe patterns of nanostructures and microstructures. We show that the surface morphology of NC-LSW crucially depends on the fluence of the laser, the number of irradiating pulses, and the incident beam angle. Our experimental observations allow us to establish a three-step model for the NC-LSW formation: the formation of laser-induced surface unevenness, inhomogeneous energy deposition due to the interference between the incident light and the scattered field, and nonuniform energy deposition due to shielding by the peaks of LSW.     

Femtosecond and nanosecond laser fabricated substrate for surface-enhanced Raman scattering

We report a simple and repeatable method for fabricating a large-area substrate for surface-enhanced Raman scattering. The substrate was processed by three steps: (i) femtosecond (fs) laser micromachining and roughening, (ii) thin-film coating, and (iii) nanosecond laser heating and melting. Numerous gold nanoparticles of various sizes were created on the surface of the silicon substrate. The 3D micro-/nanostructures generated by the fs laser provide greater surface areas with more nanoparticles leading to 2 orders of magnitude higher of the enhancement factor than in the case of a flat substrate. Using an He-Ne laser with a 632.8?nm excitation wavelength, the surface-enhanced Raman scattering enhancement factor for Rhodamine 6G was measured up to 2×10(7).     

Single crystal formation of amino acid with high temporal controllability by combining femtosecond and continuous wave laser trapping

We investigated laser trapping crystallization of glycine by using femtosecond (fs) laser as a trapping light source. Impulsively exerted fs laser pulses crystallized glycine more effectively than that induced by continuous wave (CW) laser trapping. Highly efficient crystallization and crystal growth behavior indicates fs laser irradiation increased the concentration not only at the focal spot, but also around the laser focus. Furthermore, we found that irradiation of fs pulses to CW laser-induced locally high supersaturation region enables immediate crystallization. Spatiotemporally controlled triggering of a single crystal formation with sub-second time resolution has achieved by integrating fs and CW laser trapping techniques.     

An anti-reflective 1D rectangle grating on GaAs solar cell using one-step femtosecond laser fabrication

We report the fabrication of the anti-reflective micro/nano-structure on absorbing layer of GaAs solar cell surface using an efficient approach based on one-step femtosecond laser irradiation. Morphology of the microstructures and reflectance of the cell irradiated are characterized with SEM and spectrometer to analyze the influence of laser processing parameters on the change of microstructures induced and the reflectance. It has been found that the rectangle grating micro/nano-structure with a period of 700 nm and width of 600 nm is obtained neatly with laser pulse energy of 30.5 μJ(pulse duration is 130 fs, center wavelength is 800 nm, scanning speed is 2.2 mm/s and spot diameter is 22 µm). Reflectance has been suppressed to 23.6% with rectangle structure from 33% of planar cell. In addition, simulation using a finite-difference-time domain(FDTD) method results show that the rectangle grating micro/nano-structure can effectively suppress the reflection within large wavelength ranges.     

Glassy carbon layer formed in diamond-like carbon films with femtosecond laser pulses

We report the first observation, to our knowledge, of a glassy carbon (GC) layer modified from diamond-like carbon (DLC) films with femtosecond (fs) laser pulses. The GC layer, which is confirmed by Raman spectroscopy, is produced most efficiently at low laser fluence near the ablation threshold of the DLC films. This surface modification depends little on the laser polarization and wavelength used. The fs laser-induced GC layer should be a new thin-film material useful for a variety of engineering applications due to its characteristics similar to those of DLC and the additional properties inherent in GC. PACS 61.80.Ba; 79.20.Ds; 42.62.Cf     

Fluorescence Enhancement of CdSe Q-Dots with Intense Femtosecond Laser Irradiation

Effects of intense femtosecond (fs) laser irradiation on the optical properties of cadmium selenide (CdSe) nanocrystals are studied. We present the changes in emission and absorption of laser (800 nm, 110 fs, Ti–Sapphire) irradiated CdSe nanocrystals dispersed in dimethylformamide (DMF). It is observed that the absorbance of CdSe nanocrystals capped with trioctylphosphine (TOP) increases with the number of laser pulses. The trap state luminescence intensity of these crystals degrades, whereas the band edge luminescence intensity shows an increase as a function of the fs laser irradiation. We also report strong two photon absorption and reduction in the trap state luminescence intensity after irradiation with the laser pulses.     

Dynamics of electron scattering between bulk states and the C<Subscript>1</Subscript> surface state of InP(100)

Hot electron dynamics was investigated, with a focus on scattering between bulk states and the C₁ surface state that is formed on the (2×4)-reconstructed In-rich surface of InP(100). The latter surface was prepared via metal organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) and monitored by reflectance anisotropy spectroscopy (RAS/RDS). Two-color twophoton photoemission (2PPE) was employed with laser pulses of about 50 fs duration. Hot electrons were generated in bulk states about 0.5 eV above the C₁ surface state, thereby avoiding any significant direct optical population of the surface state. A time constant of 35 fs was determined from the experimental data for electron scattering from isoenergetic bulk states to the C₁ surface state by analyzing the rise of a C₁-specific peak in the 2PPE spectrum. The decay of this C₁ peak was ascribed to energy relaxation of the photo-generated electrons to bulk states below the surface state. Analogous measurements were carried out with a (2×1/2×2)-reconstructed P-rich surface of InP(100) that was also grown via MOCVD. No sign of a surface statewas detected in the 2PPE spectra for the latter surface in the corresponding energy range of the conduction band. PACS 73.20.-r; 78.47.+p; 79.60.-i; 79.60.Bm     

Effect of metal surface morphology on nano-structured patterns induced by a femtosecond laser pulse and its experimental verification

The effect of material surface morphology on the periodic subwavelength of nano-structures induced by a femtosecond(fs) laser was investigated systematically from the initial surface roughness, the different scratches, the pre-formed ripples, and the "layer-carving" technology experiments. The results of the comparative experiments indicate that the initial surface conditions of the target surface have no obvious effects on the spatial structured periods(SSPs) and the ripple orientation of the periodic nano-structures induced by a fs laser, which agreed well with the foretold present surface two-plasmon resonance(STPR) model. Furthermore, different shapes of nanogrids with high regularity and uniformity were obtained by fs-laser fabrication.