Electro-optically induced waveguides can be used in fiber optic networks for optical power control and the distribution of optical signals transmitted over optical fibers. Reliable operation is ensured with this type of waveguides due to their non-mechanical principle of operation. Their polarization dependent behavior caused by field-induced birefringence effects may limit however their practical applications. We report on a method to reduce the polarization dependent loss in electro-optically induced waveguides with a core made of liquid crystals in isotropic phase. The concept design enables a controlled adjustment of the electric field distribution, which is responsible for inducing and shaping the optical mode, by employing an optimized electrode arrangement. In this new waveguide structure, the TM and TE modes coexist spatially and are guided in a similar way. In order to demonstrate this concept, straight and bending waveguides in 1×1 and 1×2 light input to output configurations have been designed and fabricated. The electrode arrangement and single mode waveguide geometry were optimized using FEM simulations. Bulk silicon micromachining was used to fabricate these waveguides. In particular, the manufactured device consisted of two processed silicon substrates with a liquid crystal layer enclosed in between. Devices tested with varying driving voltage have revealed comparable transmitted power for both TE and TM modes. Very low polarization dependent losses over a more than 20 dB wide dynamic attenuation range have been obtained.
The electrostrictive terpolymer poly(vinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene-1,1-chlorofluoroethylene) – P(VDF-TrFECFE) – exhibits higher field-induced strain and larger dielectric constant (> 30) than most materials. In this paper we show that the strain of this terpolymer can be increased even more by mixing it with BaTiO3 nanoparticles of high dielectric constant. For our investigation, actuator-like stacks on basis of terpolymer / nanoparticles blend thin films were prepared. Measurements of electric-field induced strain in the blend thin films, carried out with a Michelson interferometric set-up, show that indeed that the electrostrictive strain increases with increasing the nanoparticle content in the blend. Structural characterization by means of X-ray diffraction and phase transitions analysis with differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) indicate that the crystalline phase in the terpolymer host has been altered by the presence of nanoparticles. Additional measurements reveal that the dielectric permittivity of the obtained blend thin films is larger than that of the terpolymer. For the blend containing 1 wt% nanoparticles a dielectric permittivity of about 40 and an electrostriction coefficient of about 4 times larger than that of terpolymer were determined. Besides we show that by employing optimum annealing temperatures, the film quality with respect to its surface roughness can be improved.
The fundamental mechanisms and dynamics of laser ablation are reviewed, based on experiments with femtosecond laser
pulses to exclude secondary effects like the interaction of the incident laser light with the ablation plume or with a target
preconditioned during the initial slope of the laser pulse. It is shown that the incident energy drives the target into a state
of instability, far from thermodynamic equilibrium. The subsequent ultra-rapid relaxation results in the formation of self-organized
regular nanostructures in the irradiated and ablated area.
The impact of intense femtosecond laser pulses on dielectric targets results in a non-equilibrium state of the
surface. We consider the influence of this instability on ablation and surface relaxation phenomena. Important
consequences of the laser-material coupling and energy dissipation are addressed such as transient and permanent
modification of the surface. From experiments on ablation products kinetics, Coulomb explosion upon multiphoton
surface ionization has been established as the initial mechanism for desorption of fast positive ions from dielectric
surfaces. We refer to the role of surface defects responsible for ion yield enhancement and the nature of defects by
detecting laser induced fluorescence. Additionally, observations point to a set-in of a thermal emission process at higher
laser intensity. Investigating the dynamics of particle emission, we find ultra-short timescales for the coherence of
electronic excitation and energy relaxation via transient phases, the latter related to the coupling strength of the various solids. The surface morphology after ablation is modified, with regular nano- and micro-structures of features originated
from self-organization of surface instabilities.
At the bottom of ablation craters produced in many materials, e.g. dielectric and silicon crystals, by the impact of femtosecond laser radiation, regular periodic structures are observed with a feature size at the order of a few 100 nanometers, much smaller than the incident wavelength. Their orientation depends strongly on the laser polarization but not on any intrinsic crystalline parameters. An increasing number of shots results in higher contrast, better developed structures, indicating a positive feedback. The region around the impact is shown, by micro Raman spectroscopy, to undergo phase transformations like under high pressure. The structure spacing appears to depend crucially on the depth of the perturbed volume, i.e. the incident (and absorbed) energy. All observations suggest that the structures form by self-organization from instabilities induced in the material by the laser input. A general picture suggests that the irradiation results in a rapid, non-equilibrium destabilization of the crystal structure, which should not be confused with melting as a classical thermodynamic process (i.e. temperatures defined as equilibrium properties). Relaxation from this instability results in the self-assembly of the observed structures. Theoretical simulations demonstrate the feasibility of this model, which also is corroborated by comparison to other unstable situations.
Surface morphology and structural changes upon femtosecond laser ablation from crystalline silicon (001) were examined ex-situ by optical, scanning electron, and atomic force microscopy, as well as Raman spectroscopy. After repetitive illumination with several thousand laser pulses at an intensities below or near the single shot damage threshold (2x1012 W/cm2), self-assembled periodic nanostructures with periods of 200 nm resp. 600-700 nm develop at the crater bottom. Micro-Raman spectroscopy reveals phase transformations inside the crater from Si-I to the polymorphs Si-III, Si-XII, hexagonal Si-wurtzite (Si-IV), and amorphous silicon, pointing to substantial pressure and volume changes during the interaction. The ablation dynamics was monitored by time-of-flight mass spectroscopy, showing the emission of superthermal positive ions with a kinetic energy of several eV as well as significant contributions at lower kinetic energies. The results suggest that the ablation is associated with considerable recoil pressure and leaves behind a severely perturbed crystal surface. The resulting instability relaxes by a self-organization, independent of the initial, and surrounding, crystal structure.
The dynamics of femtosecond laser ablation from wide bandgap insulators (Al2O3, BaF2 and CaF2) at intensities below the single shot damage threshold (1011 - 1013 W/cm2) is characterized by efficient surface ionization, followed by the explosive emission of positive ions and small clusters, with a kinetic energy of about 100 eV (Coulomb explosion). The multiphoton coupling of the laser to the transparent material is strongly promoted by defect resonances within the bandgap, eventually generated during a considerable number of incubating pulses before a steady ablation regime is reached. At the bottom of the ablation crater, produced by an accumulation of several thousand laser pulses, periodic surface structures are developed, with a typical scaling in the nanometer range. Occasionally, these structures exhibit features like bifurcations or columns growing out of plane. The feature size and shape appears to be more sensitive to the applied laser intensity resp. irradiation dose than to wavelength or angle of incidence. The ripples cannot be explained as a result of an inhomogeneous energy input, e.g. due to interference. Instead, we suggest that the ripples are a consequence of the surface relaxation via self-organization.
The crater morphology in transparent insulators upon femtosecond laser ablation was investigated by ex-situ optical and electron microscopy. After multishot irradiation (several thousand shots), a superposition of up to three differently spaced ripple patterns developed at the crater bottom, the finest one running perpendicular and the next larger one parallel to the laser polarization. The ripples periods do not show any relation to the incident laser wavelength. On the contrary, they appear to be strongly influenced by the incident intensity, regardless of the wavelength. The coarsest structure exhibits features of plastic surface waves, reflected at the boundaries of the crater as well as at individual irregularities inside the crater. The finest ripples exhibit strong features of chaotic self-organization and percolation, such as bifurcations. Together with the fact, that ablation under the applied conditions is due to Coulomb explosion of the surface, our observations indicate that local thermal effects can be ruled out as the origin of the ripples formation, in contrast to the classical interference picture of ripples formation. This is further confirmed by two-pulse interference experiments.
Upon irradiation of barium fluoride (111) crystals with 100- fs pulses at 800nm, explosive emission of singly charged positive ions (Ba+, F+, and larger molecules and clusters) is observed with a kinetic energy of about 100 eV and an energy distribution corresponding to a temperature of only 1 eV, independent of the ion mass. Pump-probe experiments demonstrate that ion emission is always the consequence of preceding multiphoton surface ionization, resonantly enhanced by defect states within the band gap. Yet, the ionization process appears not to be noticeably slowed down by the resonances. Electron and light microscopic investigation of the desorption crater revealed frozen surface waves with the periodicity on the order of some microns. Superimposed, we found a ripple-like periodic fine structure, with a periodicity of 100-400 nm depending on the incident laser intensity. We suppose that this should be the consequence of self-organized relaxation of the surface, rather than the consequence of an interference effect as in the classical model for ripples formation.
Based on the signals produced by the induced thermo- electronic current variation, a study regarding the transient processes in laser-solid interaction was developed. Experiments were performed with a Nd:YAG laser, 100 ns pulses duration, by laser beam focusing onto wolfram samples placed into a vacuum chamber. The amplitude and the temporal variation of resulted signals can conclude about the magnitude order of the temperature decay time due to laser-solid interaction. Therefore, the output signal profile analysis gives information about the time evolution of the transient thermal processes determined by the laser radiation absorption.
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