Two-dimensional investigation of characteristic parameters and their gradients for the self-generated electric and magnetic fields of laser-induced zirconium plasma

Two-dimensional diagnosis of laser-induced zirconium(Zr)plasma has been experimentally performed using the time-of-flight method by employing Faraday cups in addition to electric and magnetic probes.The characteristic parameters of laser-induced Zr plasma have been evaluated as a function of different laser irradiances ranging from 4.5 to 11.7 GW cm-2 at different axial positions of 1–4 cm with a fixed radial distance of 2 cm.A well-supporting correlation between the plume parameters and the laser-plasma-produced spontaneous electric and magnetic(E and B)fields was established.The measurements of the characteristic parameters and spontaneously induced fields were observed to have an increasing trend with the increasing laser irradiance.However,when increasing the spatial distance in both the axial and radial directions,the plasma parameters(electron/ion number density,temperature and kinetic energy)did not show either continuously increasing or decreasing trends due to various kinetic and dynamic processes during the spatial evolution of the plume.However,the E and B fields were observed to be always diffusing away from the target.The radial component of electron number densities remained higher than the axial number density component,whereas the axial ion number density at all laser irradiances and axial distances remained higher than the radial ion number density.The higher axial self-generated electric field(SGEF)values than radial SGEF values are correlated with the effective charge-separation mechanism of electrons and ions.The generation of a self-generated magnetic field is observed dominantly in the radial direction at increasing laser irradiance as compared to the axial one due to the deflection of fast-moving electrons and the persistence of two-electron temperature on the radial axis.

Effect of matrix thermal properties on laser-induced plasma

The matrix thermal properties have an important impact on laser-induced plasma,as the thermal effect dominates the interaction between ns-pulsed laser and matter,especially in metals.We used a series of pure metals and aluminum alloys to measure plasma temperature and electron density through laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy,in order to investigate the effect of matrix thermal properties on laser-induced plasma.In pure metals,a significant negative linear correlation was observed between the matrix thermal storage coefficient and plasma temperature,while a weak correlation was observed with electron density.The results indicate that metals with low thermal conductivity or specific heat capacity require less laser energy for thermal diffusion or melting and evaporation,resulting in higher ablation rates and higher plasma temperatures.However,considering ionization energy,thermal effects may be a secondary factor affecting electron density.The experiment of aluminum alloy further confirms the influence of thermal conductivity on plasma temperature and its mechanism explanation.

Ultrafast dynamics of femtosecond laser-induced high spatial frequency periodic structures on silicon surfaces

Femtosecond laser-induced periodic surface structures(LIPSS)have been extensively studied over the past few decades.In particular,the period and groove width of high-spatial-frequency LIPSS(HSFL)is much smaller than the diffraction limit,making it a useful method for efficient nanomanufacturing.However,compared with the low-spatial-frequency LIPSS(LSFL),the structure size of the HSFL is smaller,and it is more easily submerged.Therefore,the formation mechanism of HSFL is complex and has always been a research hotspot in this field.In this study,regular LSFL with a period of 760 nm was fabricated in advance on a silicon surface with two-beam interference using an 800 nm,50 fs femtosecond laser.The ultrafast dynamics of HSFL formation on the silicon surface of prefabricated LSFL under single femtosecond laser pulse irradiation were observed and analyzed for the first time using collinear pump-probe imaging method.In general,the evolution of the surface structure undergoes five sequential stages:the LSFL begins to split,becomes uniform HSFL,degenerates into an irregular LSFL,undergoes secondary splitting into a weakly uniform HSFL,and evolves into an irregular LSFL or is submerged.The results indicate that the local enhancement of the submerged nanocavity,or the nanoplasma,in the prefabricated LSFL ridge led to the splitting of the LSFL,and the thermodynamic effect drove the homogenization of the splitting LSFL,which evolved into HSFL.

Customized modulation on plasma uniformity by non-uniform magnetic field in capacitively coupled plasma

A two-dimensional fluid model based on COMSOL Multiphysics is developed to investigate the modulation of static magnetic field on plasma homogeneity in a capacitively coupled plasma(CCP)chamber. To generate a static magnetic field, direct current is applied to a circular coil located at the top of the chamber. By adjusting the magnetic field's configuration, which is done by altering the coil current and position, both the plasma uniformity and density can be significantly modulated. In the absence of the magnetic field, the plasma density exhibits an inhomogeneous distribution characterized by higher values at the plasma edge and lower values at the center. The introduction of a magnetic field generated by coils results in a significant increase in electron density near the coils. Furthermore, an increase in the sets of coils improves the uniformity of the plasma. By flexibly adjusting the positions of the coils and the applied current,a substantial enhancement in overall uniformity can be achieved. These findings demonstrate the feasibility of using this method for achieving uniform plasma densities in industrial applications.

Effect of antenna helicity on discharge characteristics of helicon plasma under a divergent magnetic field

The characteristics of the blue core phenomenon observed in a divergent magnetic field helicon plasma are investigated using two different helical antennas, namely right-handed and lefthanded helical antennas. The mode transition, discharge image, spatial profiles of plasma density and electron temperature are diagnosed using a Langmuir probe, a Nikon D90 camera,an intensified charge-coupled device camera and an optical emission spectrometer, respectively.The results demonstrated that the blue core phenomenon appeared in the upstream region of the discharge tube at a fixed magnetic field under both helical antennas. However, it is more likely to appear in a right-handed helical antenna, in which the plasma density and ionization rate of the helicon plasma are higher. The spatial profiles of the plasma density and electron temperature are also different in both axial and radial directions for these two kinds of helical antenna. The wavelength calculated based on the dispersion relation of the bounded whistler wave is consistent with the order of magnitude of plasma length. It is proved that the helicon plasma is part of the wave mode discharge mechanism.

Diagnosing ratio of electron density to collision frequency of plasma surrounding scaled model in a shock tube using low-frequency alternating magnetic field phase shift

A non-contact low-frequency(LF)method of diagnosing the plasma surrounding a scaled model in a shock tube is proposed.This method utilizes the phase shift occurring after the transmission of an LF alternating magnetic field through the plasma to directly measure the ratio of the plasma loop average electron density to collision frequency.An equivalent circuit model is used to analyze the relationship of the phase shift of the magnetic field component of LF electromagnetic waves with the plasma electron density and collision frequency.The applicable range of the LF method on a given plasma scale is analyzed.The upper diagnostic limit for the ratio of the electron density(unit:m^(-3))to collision frequency(unit:Hz)exceeds 1×10^(11),enabling an electron density to exceed 1×10^(20)m^(-3)and a collision frequency to be less than 1 GHz.In this work,the feasibility of using the LF phase shift to implement the plasma diagnosis is also assessed.Diagnosis experiments on shock tube equipment are conducted by using both the electrostatic probe method and LF method.By comparing the diagnostic results of the two methods,the inversion results are relatively consistent with each other,thereby preliminarily verifying the feasibility of the LF method.The ratio of the electron density to the collision frequency has a relatively uniform distribution during the plasma stabilization.The LF diagnostic path is a loop around the model,which is suitable for diagnosing the plasma that surrounds the model.Finally,the causes of diagnostic discrepancy between the two methods are analyzed.The proposed method provides a new avenue for diagnosing high-density enveloping plasma.

Diagnostics of laser-induced plasma on carbon-based polymer material using atomic and molecular emission spectra

Time-integrated optical emission analysis of laser-induced plasma on Teflon is presented.Plasma was induced under atmospheric pressure air using transversely excited atmospheric CO_(2) laser pulses.Teflon is a C-based polymer that is,among other things,interesting as a substrate for laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy analysis of liquid samples.This study aimed to determine the optimal experimental conditions for obtaining neutral and ionized C spectral lines and C2 and CN molecular band emission suitable for spectrochemical purposes.Evaluation of plasma parameters was done using several spectroscopic techniques.Stark profiles of appropriate C ionic lines were used to determine electron number density.The ratio of the integral intensity of ionic-to-atomic C spectral lines was used to determine the ionization temperature.A spectral emission of C2 Swan and CN violet bands system was used to determine the temperature of the colder,peripheral parts of plasma.We critically analyzed the use of molecular emission bands as a tool for plasma diagnostics and suggested methods for possible improvements.

Transmission effects of high energy nanosecond lasers in laser-induced air plasma under different pressures

When a high energy nanosecond(ns)laser induces breakdown in the air,the plasma density generated in the rarefied atmosphere is much smaller than that at normal pressure.It is associated with a relatively lower absorption coefficient and reduces energy loss of the laser beam at low pressure.In this paper,the general transmission characterizations of a Joule level 10 ns 1064 nm focused laser beam are investigated both theoretically and experimentally under different pressures.The evolution of the electron density(n_(e)),the changes in electron temperature(T_(e))and the variation of laser intensity(I)are employed for numerical analyses in the simulation model.For experiments,four optical image transfer systems with focal length(f)of 200 mm are placed in a chamber and employed to focus the laser beam and produce plasmas at the focus.The results suggest that the transmittance increases obviously with the decreasing pressure and the plasma channels on the transmission path can be observed by the self-illumination.The simulation results agree well with the experimental data.The numerical model presents that the maximum n_e at the focus can reach 10^(19)cm^(-3),which is far below the critical density(n_(c)).As a result,the laser beam is not completely shielded by the plasmas.

Temporal electric field of a helium plasma jet by electric field induced second harmonic(E-FISH)method

Electric field is an important parameter of plasma,which is related to electron temperature,electron density,excited species density,and so on.In this work,the electric field of an atmospheric pressure plasma jet is diagnosed by the electric field induced second harmonic(E-FISH)method,and the time-resolved electric field under different conditions is investigated.When positive pulse voltage is applied,the electric field has a peak of about 25 kV cm-1at the rising edge of the voltage pulse.A dark channel is left behind the plasma bullet and the electric field in the dark channel is about 5 kV cm-1.On the other hand,when negative pulse voltage is applied,the electric field has a peak of-16 kV cm-1when the negative voltage is increased to-8 kV.A relatively bright channel is left behind the plasma head and the electric field in this relatively bright channel is about-6 kV cm-1.When the pulse rising time increases from 60 to 200 ns,the peak electric field at both the rising edge and the falling edge of the voltage decreases significantly.When 0.5%of oxygen is added to the main working gas helium,the peak electric field at the rising edge is only about 15 kV cm-1.On the other hand,when 0.5%nitrogen is added,the peak electric field increases especially at the falling edge of the voltage pulse,where it increases reversely from-12 to-16 kV cm-1(the minus sign only represents the direction of electric field).

Enhanced laser-induced plasma channels in air

Plasma is a significant medium in high-energy density physics since it can hardly be damaged. For some applications such as plasma based backward Raman amplification （BRA）, uniform high-density and large-scale plasma channels are required. In the previous experiment, the plasma transverse diameter and density are 50-200 μm and 1-2 x 10^19 cm-3, here we enhance them to 0.8 mm and 8 x 10^19 cm-3, respectively. Moreover, the gradient plasma is investigated in our experiment. A proper plasma gradient can be obtained with suitable pulse energy and delay. The experimental results are useful for plasma physics and nonlinear optics.

Measurement and analysis of species distribution in laser-induced ablation plasma of an aluminum–magnesium alloy

We proposed a theoretical spatio-temporal imaging method,which was based on the thermal model of laser ablation and the two-dimensional axisymmetric multi-species hydrodynamics model.By using the intensity formula,the integral intensity of spectral lines could be calculated and the corresponding images of intensity distribution could be drawn.Through further image processing such as normalization,determination of minimum intensity,combination and color filtering,a relatively clear species distribution image in the plasma could be obtained.Using the above method,we simulated the plasma ablated from Al-Mg alloy by different laser energies under 1 atm argon,and obtained the theoretical spatio-temporal distributions of Mg I,Mg II,Al I,Al II and Ar I species,which are almost consistent with the experimental results by differential imaging.Compared with the experimental decay time constants,the consistency is higher at low laser energy,indicating that our theoretical model is more suitable for the plasma dominated by laser-supported combustion wave.

Numerical Analysis of Interaction Between Single-Pulse Laser-Induced Plasma and Bow Shock in a Supersonic Flow

The interaction of laser-induced plasma and bow shock over a blunt body is inves- tigated numerically in an M∞ =6.5 supersonic flow. A ray-tracing method is used for simulating the process of laser focusing. The gas located at the focused zone is ionized and broken down and transformed into plasma. In a supersonic flow the plasma moves downstream and begins to interact with the bow shock when it approaches the surface of the blunt body. The parameters of flowfield and blunt body surface are changed due to the interaction. By analyzing phenomena occurring in the complex unsteady flowfield during the interaction in detail, we can better under- stand the change of pressure on the blunt body surface and the mechanism of drag reduction by laser energy deposition. The results show that the bow shock is changed into an oblique shock due to the interaction of the laser-induced low-density zone with the bow shock, so the wave drag of the blunt body is reduced.

Velocity Diagnosis of Critical Surface at Microwave Band in Laser-Induced Plasma

The velocity of critical surface at microwave band in laser-induced plasma was measured and the results are presented. The results indicate that the velocity of critical surface with low electron density is larger than that with the high one; and the velocity of critical surface increases with the laser power density.

Effect of Viscous Dissipation (Φ) on Temperature Distribution of Blood Plasma in Presence of a Magnetic Field

Applications of heat transfer show the variations in temperature of the body which is helpful for the purpose of thermal therapy in the treatment of tumor glands. This study considered theoretical approaches in analyzing the effect of viscous dissipation on temperature distribution on the flow of blood plasma through an asymmetric arterial segment. The plasma was considered to be unsteady, laminar and an incompressible fluid through non-uniform arterial segment in a two-dimensional flow. Numerical schemes developed for the coupled partial differential equations governing blood plasma were solved using Finite Difference scheme (FDS). With the aid of the finite difference approach and the related boundary conditions, results for temperature profiles were obtained. The study determined the effect of viscous dissipation on temperature of blood plasma in arteries. The equations were solved using MATLAB softwares and results were presented graphically and in tables. The increase in viscous dissipation tends to decrease blood plasma heat distribution. This study will find important application in hospitals.

Laser-Induced Graphite Plasma Kinetic Spectroscopy under Different Ambient Pressures

The laser induced plasma dynamics of graphite material are investigated by optical emission spectroscopy. Abla- tion and excitation of the graphite material is performed by using an 1064nm Nd：YAG laser in different ambient pressures. Characteristics of graphite spectra as line intensity variations and signal-to-noise ratio are presented with a main focus on the influence of the ambient pressure on the interaction of laser-induced graphite plasma with an ambient environment. Atomic emission lines are utilized to investigate the dynamical behavior of plasma, such as the excitation temperature and electron density, to describe emission differences under different ambient conditions. The excitation temperature and plasma electron density are the primary factors which contribute to the differences among the atomic carbon emission at different ambient pressures. Reactions between the plasma species and ambient gas, and the total molecular number are the main factors influencing molecular carbon emis- sion. The influence of laser energy on the plasma interaction with environment is also investigated to demonstrate the dynamical behavior of carbon species so that it can be utilized to optimize plasma fluctuations.

Femtosecond laser-induced Cu plasma spectra at different laser polarizations and sample temperatures

Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy(LIBS) is a good technique for detecting and analyzing material elements due to the plasma emission produced by the high-power laser pulse. Currently, a significant topic of LIBS research is improving the emission intensity of LIBS. This study investigated the effect of laser-polarization on femtosecond laser-ablated Cu plasma spectra at different sample temperatures. The measured lines under circularly polarized lasers were higher than those under linearly and elliptically polarized lasers. The enhancement effect was evident at higher Cu temperatures when comparing the plasma spectra that have circular and linear polarizations for different target temperatures. To understand the influence of laser-polarization and sample temperature on signal intensity, we calculated the plasma temperature(PT)and electron density(ED). The change in PT and ED was consistent with the change in the atomic lines as the laser polarization was being adjusted. When raising the Cu temperature, the PT increased while the ED decreased. Raising the Cu temperature whilst adjusting the laser-polarization is effective for improving the signal of femtosecond LIBS compared to raising the initial sample temperature alone or only changing the laser polarization.

Time-Resolved Emission Spectroscopic Study of Laser-Induced Steel Plasmas

Laser-induced steel plasma is generated by focusing a Q-switched Nd：YAG visible laser（532 nm wavelength） with an irradiance of 1 x 109 W/cm2 on a steel sample in air at atmospheric pressure.An Echelle spectrograph coupled with a gateable intensified charge-coupled detector is used to record the plasma emissions.Using time-resolved spectroscopic measurements of the plasma emissions,the temperature and electron number density of the steel plasma are determined for many times of the detector delay.The validity of the assumption by the spectroscopic methods that the laser-induced plasma（LIP） is optically thin and is also in local thermodynamic equilibrium（LTE） has been evaluated for many delay times.From the temporal evolution of the intensity ratio of two Fe I lines and matching it with its theoretical value,the delay times where the plasma is optically thin and is also in LTE are found to be 800 ns,900 ns and 1000 ns.

Terahertz generation from laser-induced plasma

Interest of the research in terahertz(THz)wave has been strongly motivated by its wide applications in the fields of physics,chemistry,biology,and engineering.Developing efficient and reliable THz source is of uttermost priority in these researches.Numerous attempts have been made in fulfilling the THz generation.Greatly benefited from the progress of the ultrafast pulses,the laser-induced-plasma is one of the auspicious tools to provide desirable THz waves,owing to its superiorities in high power threshold,intense THz signal,and ultrawide THz spectrum.This paper reviews the physics and progress of the THz generation from the laser-induced plasmas,which are produced by gas,liquid,and solid.The characteristics of the emitted THz waves are also included.There are many complicated physical processes involved in the interactions of laser-plasma,making various laser-plasma scenarios in the THz generations.In view of this,we will only focus on the THz generation classified by physical mechanisms.Finally,we discuss a perspective on the future of THz generation from the laser-induced plasma,as well as its involved challenges.

Conditions for laser-induced plasma to effectively remove nano-particles on silicon surfaces

Particles can be removed from a silicon surface by means of irradiation and a laser plasma shock wave.The particles and silicon are heated by the irradiation and they will expand differently due to their different expansion coefficients,making the particles easier to be removed.Laser plasma can ionize and even vaporize particles more significantly than an incident laser and,therefore,it can remove the particles more efficiently.The laser plasma shock wave plays a dominant role in removing particles,which is attributed to its strong burst force.The pressure of the laser plasma shock wave is determined by the laser pulse energy and the gap between the focus of laser and substrate surface.In order to obtain the working conditions for particle removal,the removal mechanism,as well as the temporal and spatial characteristics of velocity,propagation distance and pressure of shock wave have been researched.On the basis of our results,the conditions for nano-particle removal are achieved.

Microstructure and 355 nm Laser-Induced Damage Characteristics of Al₂O₃Films Irradiated with Oxygen Plasma under Different Energy

Al2O3 films were prepared using electron beam evaporation at room temperature. The samples were irradiated with oxygen plasma under different energy. The variations in average surface defect density and root mean square (RMS) surface roughness were characterized using an optical microscope and an atomic force microscope. Surface average defect density increased after plasma treatment. The RMS surface roughness of the samples decreased from 1.92 nm to 1.26 nm because of surface atom restructuring after oxygen plasma conditioning. A 355 nm laser-induced damage experiment indicated that the as-grown sample with the lowest defect density exhibited a higher laser-induced damage threshold (1.12 J/cm2) than the other treated samples. Laser-induced damage images revealed that defect is one of the key factors that affect laser-induced damage on Al2O3 films.