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- 2011 (3) (entfernen)
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- Englisch (3)
Schlagworte
- Femtosecond laser ablation (2)
- Semiconductors (2)
- Silicon (2)
- Surface plasmon polaritons (2)
- (LIPSS) (1)
- Atomic force microscopy (1)
- Conduction bands (1)
- Dielectrics (1)
- High-speed optical techniques (1)
- Laser beam effects (1)
The formation of laser-induced periodic surface structures (LIPSS) upon irradiation of silicon wafer surfaces by linearly polarized Ti:sapphire femtosecond laser pulses (pulse duration 130 fs, central wavelength 800 nm) is studied experimentally and theoretically. In the experiments, so-called low-spatial frequency LIPSS (LSFL) were found with periods smaller than the laser wavelength and an orientation perpendicular to the polarization. The experimental results are analyzed by means of a new theoretical approach, which combines the widely accepted LIPSS theory of Sipe et al. with a Drude model, in order to account for transient (intra-pulse) changes of the optical properties of the irradiated materials. It is found that the LSFL formation is caused by the excitation of surface plasmon polaritons, SPPs, once the initially semiconducting material turns to a metallic state upon formation of a dense free-electron-plasma in the material and the subsequent interference between its electrical field with that of the incident laser beam resulting in a spatially modulated energy deposition at the surface. Moreover, the influence of the laser-excited carrier density and the role of the feedback upon the multi-pulse irradiation and its relation to the excitation of SPP in a grating-like surface structure is discussed.
The formation of laser-induced periodic surface structures (LIPSS) upon irradiation of semiconductors and dielectrics by linearly polarized high-intensity Ti:sapphire fs-laser pulses (τ ~100 fs, λ ~800 nm) is studied experimentally and theoretically. In the experiments, two different types of LIPSS exhibiting very different spatial periods are observed (socalled LSFL low spatial frequency LIPSS, and HSFL - high spatial frequency LIPSS), both having a different dependence on the incident laser fluence and pulse number per spot. The experimental results are analyzed by means of a new theoretical approach, which combines the generally accepted LIPSS theory of J. E. Sipe and co-workers [Phys. Rev. B 27, 1141-1154 (1983)] with a Drude model, in order to account for transient changes of the optical properties of the irradiated materials. The joint Sipe-Drude model is capable of explaining numerous aspects of fs-LIPSS formation, i.e., the orientation of the LIPSS, their fluence dependence as well as their spatial periods. The latter aspect is specifically demonstrated for silicon crystals, which show experimental LSFL periods Λ somewhat smaller than λ. This behaviour is caused by the excitation of surface plasmon polaritons, SPP, (once the initially semiconducting material turns to a metallic state upon formation of a dense free-electron-plasma in the material) and the subsequent interference between its electrical fields with that of the incident laser beam, resulting in a spatially modulated energy deposition at the surface.
Upon multi-pulse irradiation, a feedback mechanism, caused by the redshift of the resonance in a grating-assisted SPP excitation, is further reducing the LSFL spatial periods. The SPP-based mechanism of LSFL successfully explains the remarkably large range of LSFL periods between ~0.6 λ and λ.
The formation of laser-induced periodic surface structures (LIPSS) upon irradiation of fused silica with multiple irradiation sequences consisting of five Ti:sapphire femtosecond (fs) laser pulse pairs (150 fs, 800 nm) is studied experimentally. A Michelson interferometer is used to generate near-equal-energy double-pulse sequences with a temporal pulse delay from -20 to +20 ps between the cross-polarized individual fs-laser pulses (~0.2 ps resolution). The results of multiple double-pulse irradiation sequences are characterized by means of Scanning Electron and Scanning Force Microscopy. Specifically in the sub-ps delay domain striking differences in the surface morphologies can be observed, indicating the importance of the laser-induced free-electron plasma in the conduction band of the solids for the formation of LIPSS.