Femtosecond Laser Micromachining of Aluminum Surfaces Under Controlled Gas Atmospheres

The interaction of 180 femtosecond (fs), 775 nm laser pulses with the surface of aluminum under controlled gas atmospheres at ambient pressure has been investigated to study material redeposition, residual surface roughness, and ablation rate. The effect of using various gases to protect the surface of the material appears to interfere with the effects of the plasma and can change the resulting microstructure of the machined surface. By varying the combinations of fluence and laser-scanning speed during ultrafast ablation at high repetition rates, an optimum micromachining condition can be reached, depending on the type of gas used during machining. The debris produced under certain laser-machining conditions tends to produce pure aluminum nanoparticles that are deposited very close to the machined feature by the gas used to protect the surface of the aluminum.