Abstract
We have built a mode-locked Nd:YVO4 laser with a very long resonator which produces an average power of 50 W in 13-ps pulses at 1064 nm and was designed for applications in micro-machining, the deposition of optical thin films, and the growth of nano-clusters in the laser-ablated plumes. By operating the laser at very low mode-locking repetition rates (1.5 MHz, 2.6 MHz, and 4.1 MHz), high pulse power is available in a near diffraction limited beam, allowing focused intensities to exceed 1012 W/cm2 and permitting efficient evaporation of difficult materials such as Si. The high power also allows conversion into the second harmonic at 532 nm with an efficiency exceeding 80%. Measurements of the ablation mass in experiments with metals show a 30–100 times increase in the ablation rate compared to the conventional low-repetition-rate ns-range lasers.
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79.20.Ds; 81.15.Fg; 81.16.Mk; 42.62.Cf
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Luther-Davies, B., Kolev, V., Lederer, M. et al. Table-top 50-W laser system for ultra-fast laser ablation. Appl. Phys. A 79, 1051–1055 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00339-004-2626-x
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00339-004-2626-x