Ablation efficiency of α-Al2O3 in liquid phase and ambient air by nanosecond laser irradiation

Abstract

Ablation efficiency and influences of laser parameters on a material removal rate by a nanosecond laser irradiation of α-Al2O 3 are studied in gas and liquid phases. The laser ablation in the air yields maximum material removal rate of 12 ng/pulse using a 4.6-mJ pulse energy at 4-kHz repetition rate, compared to 88 ng/pulse in the water flow. Using a specific interpulse distance and a laser repetition rate further increase material removal rate by factor of 3 and 65, respectively, owing to an optimized lattice temperature and laser pulse interactions with the generated cavitation bubble. For the ablation in the air, these parameters do not significantly affect the ablation efficiency. © 2010 The Author(s).