Search

The effect of fluence and pulse duration on the growth of nanostructures on chromium (Cr) surfaces has been investigated upon irradiation of femtosecond (fs) laser pulses in a liquid confined environment of ethanol. In order to explore the effect of fluence, targets were exposed to 1000 pulses at various peak fluences ranging from 4.7 to 11.8 J cm–2 for pulse duration of ∼25 fs. In order to explore the effect of pulse duration, targets were exposed to fs laser pulses of various pulse durations ranging from 25 to 100 fs, for a constant fluence of 11.8 J cm–2. Surface morphology and structural transformations have been analyzed by scanning electron microscopy and Raman spectroscopy, respectively. After laser irradiation, disordered sputtered surface with intense melting and cracking is obtained at the central ablated areas, which are augmented with increasing laser fluence due to enhanced thermal effects. At the peripheral ablated areas, where local fluence is approximately in the range of 1.4–4 mJ cm–2, ve...

We report on the structural investigation of self-organized micropores generated in thin gelatin, collagen, and collagen–elastin films after single and multishot irradiation with pulse durations ranging from 30 – 100 fs at 800 nm. We systematically studied the effect of laser parameters: laser energy, number of pulses, and pulse duration on the development of the micropores. This work showed that applying laser pulses at different rates significantly modified the thin film surface. The results clearly revealed that femtosecond laser treatment of thin films of biomaterials: gelatin, collagen and collagen–elastin, results in creation of micro/nanopores with different size of cavity formations. Experimentally, it is demonstrated that it is possible to influence the dimensions of the pore sizes, ranging from 100 nm to 2 μm by tuning the laser parameters. We are currently further exploring the possibility of structuring these biomaterials by applying a time delay between separate pulses. First results from cell culture experiments on laser created surface foam of collagen – elastin were successfully obtained, showing the potential of the method to cultivate cells on superficial porous substrates and the preferable selectivity of the cells to proliferate on the laser modified parts of the biopolymer substrate.

The creation of microporous surface modification of chitosan thin films irradiated by ultrashort laser pulses are studied. For this purpose, chitosan substrates were treated by using an amplified Ti:sapphire laser system at 800 nm central wavelength with 30 fs and 150 fs pulse duration and repetition rate 1 kHz and 50 Hz, respectively. Formation of surface modifications for both cases (30 fs and 150 fs) after femtosecond laser irradiation were observed. The threshold values for single-pulse ( N = 1) and multi-pulse ( N > 1) modification were evaluated by studying the linear relationship between the squared crater diameter D 2 and the logarithm of the laser fluence (F) for N = 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 30 and 50 number of laser pulses. The coefficient of incubation ξ, a major parameter in the process of surface modification and ablation of materials also was calculated for multi - pulse fluence threshold estimation by power - law relationship F th (N) = F th (1) N ξ-1 , where N is the number of applied laser pulses. The surface properties of chitosan based thin films before and after femtosecond laser irradiation were investigated. The aim of this work is to determine the optimal morphological characteristics of the created structures for tailoring of protein adsorption and cell behavior.

In this work the formation of laser-induced periodic surface structures (LIPSS) on a titanium surface upon irradiation by linearly polarized femtosecond (fs) laser pulses with a repetition rate of 1 kHz in air environment was studied experimentally. In particular, the dependence of high-spatial-frequency-LIPSS (HSFL) characteristics on various laser parameters: fluence, pulse number, wavelength (800 nm and 400 nm), pulse duration (10 fs - 550 fs), and polarization was studied in detail. In comparison with low-spatial-frequency-LIPSS (LSFL), the HSFL emerge at a much lower fluence with orientation perpendicular to the ridges of the LSFL. It was observed that these two types of LIPSS demonstrate different fluence, shot number and wavelength dependencies, which suggest their origin is different. Therefore, the HSFL formation mechanism cannot be described by the widely accepted interference model developed for describing LSFL formation.

We have demonstrated for the first time that an array of nanoantennas on an aluminum surface, fabricated using a double-pulse femtosecond laser irradiation scheme, results in a 28-fold enhancement of electron photoemission yield, driven by a third femtosecond laser pulse. The numerical electrodynamic modeling indicates that the electron emission is increased owing to instant local electromagnetic field enhancement near the nanoantenna, contributed by both the tip’s “lightning rod” effect and the focusing effect of the pit as a microreflector in parabolic nanoantenna.

We compare the morphological modifications in gelatin films, induced with an 800nm femtosecond amplifier, in subject of the number of input pulses and the input pulse duration. Foam is formed in all cases, but only under certain conditions the desirable structures that mimic the native subcellular matrix are formed. The number of input pulses significantly changes the foam structure, allowing a well-defined nano-structuring for optimal tissue-engineering.

Under certain conditions, ultrafast pulsed laser interaction with matter leads to the formation of self-organized conical as well as periodic surface structures (commonly reffered to as, laser induced periodic surface structures, LIPSS). The purpose of the present investigations is to explore the effect of fsec laser fluence and ambient environments (Vacuum & O2) on the formation of LIPSS and conical structures on the Ti surface. The surface morphology was investigated by scanning electron microscope (SEM). The ablation threshold with single and multiple (N = 100) shots and the existence of an incubation effect was demonstrated by SEM investigations for both the vacuum and the O2 environment. The phase analysis and chemical composition of the exposed targets were performed by x-ray diffraction (XRD) and energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDS), respectively. SEM investigations reveal the formation of LIPSS (nano & micro). FFT d-spacing calculations illustrate the dependence of periodicity on the fluence and ambient environment. The periodicity of nano-scale LIPSS is higher in the case of irradiation under vacuum conditions as compared to O2. Furthermore, the O2 environment reduces the ablation threshold. XRD data reveal that for the O2 environment, new phases (oxides of Ti) are formed. EDS analysis exhibits that after irradiation under vacuum conditions, the percentage of impurity element (Al) is reduced. The irradiation in the O2 environment results in 15% atomic diffusion of oxygen.

The sub and near-threshold topographic signatures of the spallation of nanometer-thick melt layers during single-shot femtosecond laser ablation of bulk aluminum and gold were experimentally observed for the first time, using scanning electron microscopy with high spatial resolution. The novel ablative nanofeatures—sub-threshold boiling nanopits, the partially detached ultrathin solidified melt layer, and the lamellar surface structure under the layer along the spallative crater border, as well as the foam-like nanostructure of the crater bottom—indicate the boiling origin of the spallation threshold, rather than the thermomechanical rupture of the molten surface layer in a propagating unloading wave. These ablative surface nanofeatures were also revealed in trenches of single-shot, near-wavelength normal interference ripples on the aluminum surface, indicating their spallative nature and being promising for biosensing applications.