Numerical study of ultra-short laser ablation of metals and of laser plume dynamics

Tatiana Itina (1) , François Vidal (2) , Philippe Delaporte (1) , Marc Sentis (1)

1 LP3 - Laboratoire Lasers, Plasmas et Procédés photoniques
2 EMT-INRS - Énergie Matériaux Télécommunications - INRS

Numerical modeling is used to investigate the physical mechanisms of the interaction of ultra-short (subpicosecond) laser pulses with metallic targets. The laser-target interaction is modeled by using a one-dimensional hydrodynamic code that includes the absorption of laser radiation, the electronic heat conduction, the electron-phonon or electron-ion energy exchange, as well as a realistic equation of state. Laser fluences typical for micromachining are considered. The results of the ID modeling are then used as the initial conditions for a 2D plasma expansion model. The dynamics of laser plume expansion in femtosecond regime is investigated. Calculations show that the plasma plume is strongly forward directed. In addition, a two-peaked axial density profile is obtained for 400 nm laser wavelength. The calculation results agree with the experimental observations.

Domains: Engineering Sciences [physics]; Chemical and Process Engineering

Tatiana Itina, François Vidal, Philippe Delaporte, Marc Sentis. Numerical study of ultra-short laser ablation of metals and of laser plume dynamics. Applied physics. A, Materials science & processing, 2004, 79 (4-6), pp.1089-1092. ⟨ujm-00377599⟩