High-Speed Imaging of Laser Ablation Process

Introduction

Laser ablation is the process of removing material from a solid (or occasionally liquid) surface by irradiating it with a laser beam. At high irradiation intensities, material on the solid surface is vaporized and converted to plasma. Laser ablation is utilized in a wide range of fields, including product processing, medical, material manufacturing, and more. Examples of product processing include electronic component processing by Q-switched Nd: YAG laser and microfabrication of plastics and ceramics by excimer laser. An example in the medical field is refractive surgery of the cornea using an ArF laser. In material production, it is notably used in thin film production apparatuses. Although this application of laser ablation is not suitable for mass production of thin films, the ability to easily create a thin film having the same composition ratio as a target (solid surface) and the ease with which the thickness can be changed, have led to its wide use in specialized applications. Observation of the substances discharged (plume) during ablation and elucidation of the behavior of the laser ablation plume make it possible to optimize the film-forming conditions and enhance development of thin films. It is believed that observation of the ablation plume using a high-speed video camera is important. Using the Shimadzu Hyper Vision HPV-X2 high-speed video camera, we were able to observe and document the laser ablation plume generated using AZO (transparent electrode material) as the target.

August 26, 2015 GMT