Generation of debris in the femtosecond laser machining of a silicon substrate

A mechanism of debris accumulation around the hole created on a silicon substrate with a femtosecond laser is experimentally studied. The hole created by the laser pulses has an edge consisting of pillared structures. However, no solid or liquid materials with similar dimensions as the pillared structures were ejected from the hole as the laser machining was performed in vacuum or in the presence of various gases. When the target was placed in a gas under 100 Torr, a thick layer of cotton-like material formed around the hole. Laser irradiation of a vertically placed target resulted in re-solidified material that formed after dripping from the hole edge, showing that substrate was partially melted. The surface morphology features suggest that the debris was formed as a result of aggregation of small particles such as atoms or atomic clusters on the substrate surface instead of large-scale droplets or fragments, which are commonly observed with nanosecond lasers. PACS 78.67.Bf; 81.15.Fg; 81.16.Mk; 81.20.Wk; 81.65.Cf