Microstructuring of silicon with femtosecond laser pulses
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors report that silicon surfaces develop an array of sharp conical spikes when irradiated with 500 laser pulses of 100-fs duration, 10kJ/m2 fluence in 500-Torr SF6 or Cl2.
Abstract: We report that silicon surfaces develop an array of sharp conical spikes when irradiated with 500 laser pulses of 100-fs duration, 10-kJ/m2 fluence in 500-Torr SF6 or Cl2. The spikes are up to 40-μm tall, and taper to about 1-μm diam at the tip. Irradiation of silicon surfaces in N2, Ne, or vacuum creates structured surfaces, but does not create sharp conical spikes.
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TL;DR: In this paper, the basic concepts and strategies adopted to minimize reflectance of anti-reflective coatings (ARCs) are described in greater detail and state-of-the-art fabrication techniques have been fully illustrated.
Abstract: Anti-reflective coatings (ARCs) have evolved into highly effective reflectance and glare reducing components for various optical and opto-electrical equipments. Extensive research in optical and biological reflectance minimization as well as the emergence of nanotechnology over the years has contributed to the enhancement of ARCs in a major way. In this study the prime objective is to give a comprehensive idea of the ARCs right from their inception, as they were originally conceptualized by the pioneers and lay down the basic concepts and strategies adopted to minimize reflectance. The different types of ARCs are also described in greater detail and the state-of-the-art fabrication techniques have been fully illustrated. The inspiration that ARCs derive from nature (‘biomimetics’) has been an area of major research and is discussed at length. The various materials that have been reportedly used in fabricating the ARCs have also been brought into sharp focus. An account of application of ARCs on solar cells and modules, contemporary research and associated challenges are presented in the end to facilitate a universal understanding of the ARCs and encourage future research.
1,047 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a review of the characteristics of ultrafast laser processing and the recent advancements and applications of both surface and volume processing is presented, and a summary of the technology with future outlooks are also given.
Abstract: The unique characteristics of ultrafast lasers, such as picosecond and femtosecond lasers, have opened up new avenues in materials processing that employ ultrashort pulse widths and extremely high peak intensities. Thus, ultrafast lasers are currently used widely for both fundamental research and practical applications. This review describes the characteristics of ultrafast laser processing and the recent advancements and applications of both surface and volume processing. Surface processing includes micromachining, micro- and nanostructuring, and nanoablation, while volume processing includes two-photon polymerization and three-dimensional (3D) processing within transparent materials. Commercial and industrial applications of ultrafast laser processing are also introduced, and a summary of the technology with future outlooks are also given. Scientists in Asia have reviewed the role of ultrafast lasers in materials processing. Koji Sugioka from RIKEN in Japan and Ya Cheng from the Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics in China describe how femtosecond and picosecond lasers can be used to perform useful tasks in both surface and volume processing. Such lasers can cut, drill and ablate a variety of materials with high precision, including metals, semiconductors, ceramics and glasses. They can also polymerize organic materials that contain a suitable photosensitizer and can three-dimensionally process inside transparent materials such as glass, and are already being used to fabricate medical stents, repair photomasks, drill ink-jet nozzles and pattern solar cells. The researchers also explain the characteristics of such lasers and the interaction of ultrashort, intense pulses of light with matter.
973 citations
TL;DR: By identifying the regimes of junction doping concentration in which each mechanism dominates, this work was able to design and fabricate an independently confirmed 18.2%-efficient nanostructured 'black-silicon' cell that does not need the antireflection coating layer normally required to reach a comparable performance level.
Abstract: The efficiency of solar cells with high-area, nanostructured surfaces is limited by surface and Auger charge-recombination processes, which can be slowed through appropriate levels of junction doping
824 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a new field of direct femtosecond laser surface nano/microstructuring and its applications is reviewed, where the authors present a review of the current state-of-the-art in this field.
Abstract: This paper reviews a new field of direct femtosecond laser surface nano/microstructuring and its applications. Over the past few years, direct femtosecond laser surface processing has distinguished itself from other conventional laser ablation methods and become one of the best ways to create surface structures at nano- and micro-scales on metals and semiconductors due to its flexibility, simplicity, and controllability in creating various types of nano/microstructures that are suitable for a wide range of applications. Significant advancements were made recently in applying this technique to altering optical properties of metals and semiconductors. As a result, highly absorptive metals and semiconductors were created, dubbed as the “black metals” and “black silicon”. Furthermore, various colors other than black have been created through structural coloring on metals. Direct femtosecond laser processing is also capable of producing novel materials with wetting properties ranging from superhydrophilic to superhydrophobic. In the extreme case, superwicking materials were created that can make liquids run vertically uphill against the gravity over an extended surface area. Though impressive scientific achievements have been made so far, direct femtosecond laser processing is still a young research field and many exciting findings are expected to emerge on its horizon.
822 citations
TL;DR: A two-dimensional periodic array of subwavelength silicon nanocylinders designed to possess strongly substrate-coupled Mie resonances yields almost zero total reflectance over the entire spectral range from the ultraviolet to the near-infrared.
Abstract: Reflection is a natural phenomenon that occurs when light passes the interface between materials with different refractive index. In many applications, such as solar cells or photodetectors, reflection is an unwanted loss process. Many ways to reduce reflection from a substrate have been investigated so far, including dielectric interference coatings, surface texturing, adiabatic index matching and scattering from plasmonic nanoparticles. Here we present an entirely new concept that suppresses the reflection of light from a silicon surface over a broad spectral range. A two-dimensional periodic array of subwavelength silicon nanocylinders designed to possess strongly substrate-coupled Mie resonances yields almost zero total reflectance over the entire spectral range from the ultraviolet to the near-infrared. This new antireflection concept relies on the strong forward scattering that occurs when a scattering structure is placed in close proximity to a high-index substrate with a high optical density of states.
807 citations
References
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TL;DR: In this paper, a theory for laser-induced periodic surface structure was developed by associating each Fourier component of induced structure with the corresponding Fourier components of inhomogeneous energy deposition just beneath the surface.
Abstract: We develop a theory for laser-induced periodic surface structure by associating each Fourier component of induced structure with the corresponding Fourier component of inhomogeneous energy deposition just beneath the surface. We assume that surface roughness, confined to a region of height much less than the wavelength of light, is responsible for the symmetry breaking leading to this inhomogeneous deposition; we find strong peaks in this deposition in Fourier space, which leads to predictions of induced fringe patterns with spacing and orientation dependent on the angle of incidence and polarization of the damaging beam. The nature of the generated electromagnetic field structures and their relation to the simple "surface-scattered wave" model for periodic surface damage are discussed. Our calculation, which is for arbitrary angle of incidence and polarization, applies a new approach to the electrodynamics of randomly rough surfaces, introducing a variational principle to deal with the longitudinal fields responsible for local field, or "depolarization," corrections. For a $p$-polarized damaging beam our results depend on shape and filling factors of the surface roughness, but for $s$-polarized light they are essentially independent of these generally unknown parameters; thus an unambiguous comparison of our theory with experiment is possible.
1,144 citations
TL;DR: A novel method for three-dimensional optical data storage that has submicrometer size resolution, provides a large contrast in index of refraction, and is applicable to a wide range of transparent materials is presented.
Abstract: We present a novel method for three-dimensional optical data storage that has submicrometer size resolution, provides a large contrast in index of refraction, and is applicable to a wide range of transparent materials. Bits are recorded by use of a 0.65-N.A. objective to focus 100-fs laser pulses inside the material. The laser pulse produces a submicrometer-diameter structurally altered region with high contrast in index of refraction. We record binary information by writing such bits in multiple planes and read it out with a microscope objective with a short depth of field. We demonstrate data storage and retrieval with 2-microm in-plane bit spacing and 15-microm interplane spacing (17 Gbits/cm(3)). Scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy show structural changes confined to an area 200 nm in diameter.
959 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors developed a theory which predicts the observed spacing, polarization, and growth properties of ripple structures after illumination of metals, semiconductors, and dielectrics by intense laser pulses.
Abstract: Spontaneous periodic surface structures, or ripples, are frequently observed after illumination of metals, semiconductors, and dielectrics by intense laser pulses. We develop a theory which predicts the observed spacing, polarization, and growth properties of these ripples. In this model, one or several Fourier components of a random surface disturbance scatter light from the incident beam very nearly along the surface. The interference of this diffracted optical wave with the incident beam then gives rise to optical interference fringes which can reinforce the initial disturbance. Sinusoidal corrugations on either metallic or molten surfaces seem to provide strong positive feedback for ripple growth, whereas sinusoidal gratings in temperature, electron-hole density, or dielectric constant seem much less well correlated with observations.
438 citations
TL;DR: It is shown that during the first 100 fs the changes of the optical constants and of the nonlinear optical susceptibility are determined by the various electronic excitation processes and only to a lesser extent by the process of disordering.
Abstract: Laser-induced ultrafast order-disorder transitions in silicon and gallium arsenide are studied by means of femtosecond time-resolved linear and nonlinear optical spectroscopy. Detailed measurements of the reflectivity and of the reflected second harmonic over a wide range of fluences reveal a complex picture of the phase transformation. We show that during the first 100 fs the changes of the optical constants and of the nonlinear optical susceptibility ${\mathrm{\ensuremath{\chi}}}^{(2)}$ are determined by the various electronic excitation processes and only to a lesser extent by the process of disordering. On the other hand, time-resolved measurements of reflectivity spectra indicate that the development of a Drude-like metallic spectrum takes a few hundred femtoseconds. Our data show that the laser-induced structural changes develop slower than previously believed, occurring on a time scale of a few hundred femtoseconds.
296 citations