Soft picosecond X-ray laser nanomodification of gold and aluminum surfaces

Experimental and theoretical investigations of aluminum (Al) and gold (Au) surface modification by soft X-ray laser pulse are presented. Well-polished samples of Al and Au are irradiated by ps-duration pulse with wavelength of 13.9 nm at the energy range of 24–72 nJ. Differences in the melting and the ablation processes for those materials are observed. It is shown that at low laser pulse energy, the nanoscale ripples on the surface may be induced by melting without following ablation. In that case, the nanoscale changes in the surface are caused by splash of molten metal under gradient of fluence. At higher laser pulse energy, the ablation process occurs and craters are formed on the surface. However, the melting determines the size of the modified surface at all ranges of the laser energies. For interpretation of experimental results, the atomistic simulations of melting and ablation processes in Al and Au are provided. The calculated threshold fluencies for melting and ablation are well consistent with measured ones.     

“Cold” CO<Subscript>2</Subscript> laser ablation of green-state LTCC—experimental verification of improved model and comparison of various LTCC materials

New experimental results in support of the universal mechanism of “cold” laser ablation for machining of various commercial green ceramic materials (LTCC) are presented in this paper. The “cold” ablation model was mathematically formulated and employed to derive an ablation curve equation. The model was tested by CO₂ laser ablation of a custom-made green-state alumina ceramic featuring varying binder content. An excellent fit of ablation curve to experimental data was obtained, yielding insight into process energetics and an ablative measurement method of absorption coefficient. The analysis was applied to a sample of commercial LTCC materials. The ablation results were practically identical for all materials in agreement with the prediction of the model, with the high rates of >100 micron/shot at repetition >1 kHz and accuracy comparable with the ceramic grain size. This work provides evidence that the CO₂ laser processing has a great potential to become a key low-cost precision processing method for the existing LTCC-based electronic devices (micro-via drilling, general cutting and scribing) and for the new generation of LTCC-based devices comprising micro-fluidics, micro-mechanics, opto-electronics and meta-material structures.     

准分子激光取样与电感耦合等离子体质谱和光谱联用分析仪器研究进展

将准分子激光剥蚀取样后的产物经由电感耦合等离子质谱与光谱分析,从而获得被激光剥蚀样品的元素与同位素含量信息,是迄今为止适应于表面原位微区分析最为重要的分析科学技术手段之一.基于准分子激光剥蚀取样技术分别与电感耦合等离子体质谱或发射光谱技术联用的分析手段,已经被广泛应用于地质学、材料学、环境科学,甚至生命科学领域的原位微...     

Laser ablation of powdered samples and analysis by means of laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy

The presented work proves the capacities of laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) as a fast, universal, and versatile technique for analysis of complex materials as ceramics. This paper reports on the analysis of ceramic raw materials (brick clays and kaolin) submitted to laser ablation in the form of pressed pellets. Spectrographic study was provided by standard single-pulse LIBS technique and orthogonal reheating double-pulse LIBS. It was found that both methods are comparable in terms of analytical performance, if adequate experimental parameters and signal detection systems are used.     

Laser ablation assisted spark induced breakdown spectroscopy and its application

Recently, laser ablation assisted spark induced breakdown spectroscopy (LA-SIBS) has been growing rapidly and continue to be extended to a broad range of materials analysis. Characterized by employing a specifically designed high voltage and pulse discharge circuit to generate a spark and used to enhance plasma emission produced by laser ablation, allows direct analysis of materials without prior sample preparation. This paper reviews recent development and application of laser ablation assisted spark induced breakdown spectroscopy for material analysis. Following a summary of fundamentals and instrumentation of the LA-SIBS analytical technique, the development and applications of laser ablation assisted spark induced breakdown spectroscopy for the analysis of conducting materials and insulating materials is described.     

Precise etching of fused silica for refractive and diffractive micro-optical applications

One of the challenges of current laser material processing is the high-quality etching of transparent materials for micro-optical applications. The ablation of transparent materials with UV-, ultrashort pulse and even of VUV-lasers is characterized by a high etch rate and a high laser fluence and causes considerable surface roughness evolution. The combination of specific laser processing techniques, e.g., scanning contour mask technique and direct writing with a small laser spot, with laser-induced backside wet etching (LIBWE) allows the direct machining of dielectric materials with an almost optical quality for the fabrication of diffractive as well as refractive topographic features. The etching of multi-level elements, gratings with variable depth, micro-lenses as well as free-form surface topographies with PV-values from some 100 nm to a few micrometers, a nanometer depth accuracy and a low roughness of less than 10 nm rms is presented and demonstrates the capabilities of this approach for precision engineering.     

Subpicosecond excimer laser ablation of thick gold films of ultra-fine particles generated by a gas deposition technique

The results of UV laser ablation of gold nanoparticle films on glass substrates using femtosecond pulses are presented. Films of ultra-fine gold particles were prepared by an inert gas evaporation and deposition technique, resulting in a well-defined log-normal particle size distribution of (7ǃ) nm. The pulse length of the laser was 500 fs at a wavelength of 248 nm. Ablation thresholds, ablation rates at different fluxes, and the morphology of the ablated structures are presented. For the nanoparticle films studied an ablation rate five times higher than that of gold films prepared by the conventional evaporation technique was found. The ablation thresholds and rates are supposed to depend on the particle size and also on the evaporation pressure. These results are explained by taking into account the energy transport properties of nanocrystalline and conventionally evaporated gold films.     

Dual-beam ablation of fused silica by multiwavelength excitation process using KrF excimer and F2 lasers

A new technique of dual-beam laser ablation of fused silica by multiwavelength excitation process using a 248-nm KrF excimer laser (ablation beam) coupled with a 157-nm F₂ laser (excitation beam) in dry nitrogen atmosphere is reported. The dual-beam laser ablation greatly reduced debris deposition and, thus, significantly improved the ablation quality compared with single-beam ablation of the KrF laser. High-quality ablation can be achieved at the delay times of KrF excimer laser irradiation shorter than 10 ns due to a large excited-state absorption. The ablation rate can reach up to 80 nm/pulse at the fluence of 4.0 J/cm² for the 248-nm laser and 60 mJ/cm² for the F₂ laser. The ablation threshold and effective absorption coefficient of KrF excimer laser are estimated to be 1.4 J/cm² and 1.2᎒⁵ cm^-1, respectively.     

Aluminum thin film enhanced IR nanosecond laser-induced frontside etching of transparent materials

Laser processing of glass is of significant commercial interest for microfabrication of precision optical engineering devices. In this work, a laser ablation enhancement mechanism for microstructuring of glass materials is presented. The method consists of depositing a thin film of aluminum on the front surface of the glass material to be etched. The laser beam modifies the glass material by being incident on this front-side. The influence of ablation fluence in the nanosecond regime, in combination with the deposition of the aluminum layer of various thicknesses, is investigated by determining the ablation threshold for different glass materials including soda-lime, borosilicate, fused silica and sapphire. Experiments are performed using single laser pulse per shot in an air environment. The best enhancement in terms of threshold fluence reduction is obtained for a 16 nm thick aluminum layer where a reduction of two orders of magnitude in the ablation threshold fluence is observed for all the glass samples investigated in this work.     

Microcavity dynamics during laser-induced spallation of liquids and gels

Photomechanical fracture induced by thermoelastic stress waves is an important mechanism of tissue ablation by short laser pulses. In this study, we present experimental investigations of the fracture process in ductile, water-containing materials and compare the results with a theoretical calculation. The model describes cavitation caused by the negative part of a bipolar thermoelastic stress wave. Pulses from aQ-switched, frequency-doubled Nd:YAG laser with 8 ns duration were used to irradiate dyed water and gelatine with variable absorption coefficient. Cavitation and ablation were observed with various time-resolved methods such as stress detection, video imaging and an optical pump-probe technique for the detection of individual cavities. Quantitative agreement between experiment and simulation could be achieved in the case of cavity lifetimes, especially at low laser fluence where the bubble density is low and no coalescence takes place. An increase of the threshold energy density for ablation with rising absorption coefficient and a distortion of the thermoelastic wave in the presence of cavitation were experimentally observed and could be qualitatively explained by use of the simulation. The results obtained in this study should facilitate the choice of the optimal laser parameters for photomechanical tissue ablation.     

Ultraviolet and visible Raman spectroscopy characterization of diamond–like carbon film growth by pulsed laser deposition

Laser-induced removal of flash from heat sinks in integrated circuit (IC) packages has been studied. It is found that flash can be effectively removed from heat sinks in plastic IC packages by laser deflashing. An optical microscope, an α-step surface profiler and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy are used to analyze the deflashing efficiency. Laser deflashing of IC packages is based on laser ablation of flash materials. With an increase of laser fluence, the ablation rate increases. The laser fluence is selected between the ablation threshold of flash materials and that of heat-sink materials. An acoustic wave is generated by laser ablation of flash materials. Acoustic wave detection is used to monitor the surface cleanness during laser deflashing and to determine the ablation threshold of flash materials. Received: 18 April 2001 / Accepted: 14 September 2001 / Published online: 17 October 2001     

激光分离脆性材料的研究

传统分离脆性材料的技术由于易产生残余应力、显微裂纹与边部碎屑等缺陷，越来越不能满足半导体工业高精度与高清洁度的要求。激光微细加工技术以无污染、无接触及加工精度高、操作柔性好等优势，正成为一种很有潜力的脆性材料精密加工技术。介绍了用于分离脆性材料的几种典型激光微细加工技术，包括激光烧蚀切割技术、激光诱导张应力控制微裂纹扩展技术与激光剥离技术的工艺原理、特点及研究现状，指出了其存在的主要问题并探讨了其改进措施。最后预测了激光分离技术的发展前景。     

Ferromagnetic liquid droplets

Experimental evidence for ferromagnetic behavior of liquid droplets produced by laser ablation from amorphous alloys is presented for the first time. Thin films of amorphous magnetic materials are fabricated by a laser deposition technique in the presence and in the absence of magnetic field. The differences in the parameters of deposited films are attributed to the ferromagnetic properties of small liquid droplets. Pis’ma Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 67, No. 9, 686–689 (10 May 1998) Published in English in the original Russian journal. Edited by Steve Torstveit.     

Laser ablation of dental materials using a microsecond Nd:YAG laser

The action of microsecond laser pulses with a wavelength of 1064 nm on dental tissues (enamel and dentin) and various dental materials used for tooth replacement and filling (ceramics, metal alloys, and composites) is studied. It is demonstrated that the ablation thresholds of all of the dental materials are significantly lower than the threshold laser fluences for the dental tissue (E _thr = 200–300 J/cm²). At the laser fluences that do not allow ablation and damage of the dental tissues, the dental materials are effectively removed at a rate of no greater than 40 μm per pulse. It is shown that the laser ablation of the materials under study involves two processes (evaporation and volume explosion) depending on the optical density. The results obtained indicate that the laser radiation with a wavelength of 1064 nm and the microsecond pulse duration is promising for dental applications, since it allows effective cleaning of the tooth surface from various dental materials in the absence of the damages of dental tissues.     

Micromachining NiTi tubes for use in medical devices by using a femtosecond laser

Recent growth in medical device technology has been substantially driven by developments in laser micromachining, which is a powerful fabrication technique in which nickel–titanium (Nitinol, NiTi) alloy materials that exhibit superelastic and shape memory properties are formed (e.g., self-expanding stents). In this study a NiTi tube curve surface process is proposed, involving a femtosecond laser process and a galvano-mirror scanner. The diameter of the NiTi tube was 5.116 mm, its thickness was 0.234 mm, and its length was 100 mm. The results indicated that during the machine process the ablation mechanism of the NiTi tubes was changed by altering the machining path. The path alteration enhanced the laser ablation rate from 12.3 to 26.7 μm/J. Thus the path alteration contributed to a wide kerf line, enabling the assisted air to efficiently remove the debris deposited at the bottom of the kerf during the laser ablation process. The results indicated that the NiTi tube curve process enhanced the laser ablation rate by two times and reduced the amount of energy accumulated within the materials by 50% or more. By altering the machining path using the scanning system, this process can decrease the production of heat affected zones (the accumulation of thermal energy) in medical device applications.     

Direct fabrication of microgratings in fused quartz by laser-induced plasma-assisted ablation with a KrF excimer laser

We report precision microfabrication of fused quartz by laser ablation with a conventional UV laser for what is believed to be the first time. A high-quality micrograting structure is fabricated in fused quartz by a novel technique of laser-induced plasma-assisted ablation with a single KrF excimer laser (248 nm). The plasma generated from a metal target by laser irradiation effectively assists in ablation of the fused-quartz substrate by the same laser beam, although the laser beam is transparent to the substrate. A grating with a period of 1.06 mum is achieved by use of a phase mask. We can control the grating depth to 300 nm by changing the pulse number. This technique permits high-quality microfabrication of electronic and optoelectronic devices based on fused quartz and related silicate materials by use of a conventional UV laser.     

Hybrid laser processing for microfabrication of glass

Hybrid laser processing for the precision microfabrication of glass materials, in which the interaction of a conventional pulsed laser beam and a medium on the material surface leads to effective ablation and modification, is reviewed. A major role of the medium is to produce strong absorption of the conventional laser beam by the material. Simultaneous irradiation by a vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) laser beam that possesses an extremely small laser fluence and an ultraviolet (UV) laser greatly improves the ablation quality and modification efficiency for fused silica (VUV-UV multiwavelength excitation process). The metal plasma generated by the laser beam effectively assists high-quality ablation of transparent materials by the same laser beam, resulting in microstructuring, cutting, color marking, printing, and selective metallization of glass materials (laser-induced plasma-assisted ablation (LIPAA)). The detailed discussion presented here includes the ablation mechanism of hybrid laser processing. Received: 18 December 2002 / Accepted: 20 January 2003 / Published online: 28 May 2003 RID="*" ID="*"Corresponding author. Fax: +81-48/462-4682, E-mail: ksugioka@postman.riken.go.jp     

激光烧蚀聚甲醛的热-化学耦合模型及其验证

针对激光辐照聚甲醛的烧蚀现象,建立了一种包含升温、相变、热解及热解产物飞散等过程的热-化学耦合模型.采用无规热解模型描述聚甲醛升温后的热解过程,给出了不同热解率下热解产物的组成.利用基团贡献法计算烧蚀产物组分的热力学性质,并按照混合法则确定烧蚀产物混合物的名义标准沸点和临界温度.当烧蚀产物温度低于临界温度时,以液态蒸发机理表征热解产物的烧蚀,用Knudsen层关系式计算烧蚀质量;反之热解产物飞散由气体动力学机理控制,采用间断守恒关系及Jouguet条件描述烧蚀进程.本模型可给出激光辐照下聚甲醛的烧蚀质量、烧蚀温度、烧蚀产物组成和不同机理的烧蚀比率.与实验结果对比表明,当激光能量密度小于30 J/cm2时本模型能准确地描述烧蚀过程.     

Ablation mechanism study on metallic materials with a 10 ps laser under high fluence

Single shot ablation of metallic materials of aluminium, titanium alloy (Ti6Al4V) and gold has been studied with 10 picoseconds (ps) laser pulses experimentally and theoretically. The ablation rate variation at high fluence was explained by a simplified predictive model based on critical-point phase separation (CPPS) theory. A comparison between experimental and numerical results inferred that CPPS may well be the dominant ablation mechanism for high fluence laser ablation at 10 ps laser duration.