Mass spectrometric studies of laser ablated plume from a superconducting material

The ionic species present in the laser ablated plume from the surface of the Bi_1.6Pb_0.4Sr₂Ca₂Cu₃O_ysuperconducting target have been investigated using a non-commercial laboratory developed linear time-of-flight (TOF) mass spectrometer. The recorded TOF mass spectra reveal the presence of all the atomic species of the target material, monoxide and cluster ions. The occurrence of clusters in the mass spectra is the evidence of aggregation processes at higher laser fluence. The dependence of the ionic yield of the species has been studied using the fundamental (1064 nm), second harmonic (532 nm) and fourth harmonic (266 nm) of a Nd:YAG laser. The maximum ionization of the species present in the plume is observed at 266 nm even at lower laser fluence. The effect of the laser fluence on the total and individual ionic yields of the ablated species is also presented.