Laser induced plasma in the formation of surface-microstructured silicon

Abstract The plasma induced by femtosecond laser pulses irradiated on silicon surface has been investigated by optical emission spectroscopy. The plasma emission spectra show strong dependence on the structuring ambient gas species and pressure. Among the four ambient gases (SF 6 , N 2 , air and vacuum), the plasma obtained in sulfur hexafluoride (SF 6 ) shows the strongest signals. The emission intensities increase initially with the gas pressure, and achieve strongest at the pressure of about 70 kPa, then decrease as the pressure further increases. The stronger plasma emission signals indicate stronger reactions, resulting in sharper sample morphology, which provides an insight into the reaction process.