Abstract
The overall goal of our work is to understand etching by high-fluence excimer laser pulses. The primary experimental technique is to measure the laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) from atoms and diatomic molecules in the etch plume. One of the materials originally under Investigation1 was sapphire, Al2O3. The primary conclusion is that UV photons incident on sapphire produce a high electron-hole density and consequent photochemical breakdown and ablation of the surface. Major evidence for this conclusion is that the LIF determined surface temperature Increased only to ≲500 K even at the ablation threshold, which is 800 mJ/cm2 at 193 nm.
© 1988 Optical Society of America
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