Nanotechnology and lasers are among the most successful and active fields of research and technology that have boomed during the past two decades. Many improvements are based on the controlled ...manufacturing of nanostructures that enable tailored material functionalization for a wide range of industrial applications, electronics, medicine, etc., and have already found entry into our daily life. One appealing approach for manufacturing such nanostructures in a flexible, robust, rapid, and contactless one-step process is based on the generation of laser-induced periodic surface structures (LIPSS). This Perspective article analyzes the footprint of the research area of LIPSS on the basis of a detailed literature search, provides a brief overview on its current trends, describes the European funding strategies within the Horizon 2020 programme, and outlines promising future directions.
Surface nanostructuring enables the manipulation of many essential surface properties. With the recent rapid advancements in laser technology, a contactless large‐area processing at rates of up to m2 ...s−1 becomes feasible that allows new industrial applications in medicine, optics, tribology, biology, etc. On the other hand, the last two decades enable extremely successful and intense research in the field of so‐called laser‐induced periodic surface structures (LIPSS, ripples). Different types of these structures featuring periods of hundreds of nanometers only—far beyond the optical diffraction limit—up to several micrometers are easily manufactured in a single‐step process and can be widely controlled by a proper choice of the laser processing conditions. From a theoretical point of view, however, a vivid and very controversial debate emerges, whether LIPSS originate from electromagnetic effects or are caused by matter reorganization. This article aims to close a gap in the available literature on LIPSS by reviewing the currently existent theories of LIPSS along with their numerical implementations and by providing a comparison and critical assessment of these approaches.
After more than five decades of research on laser‐induced period surface structures (LIPSS), the competition of the two different main theories (electromagnetics vs matter‐reorganization) is over: both approaches are currently merging into a coherent view on LIPSS. Depending on materials and irradiation conditions, aspects supporting one of the two theory classes can dominate the experimental observations.
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FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
Modern life and global communication would not be possible without technologically tailored thin films; they are omnipresent in daily life applications. In most cases, the films are deposited ...entirely at the carrying substrates in a specific processing step of the device or sample. In some cases, however, removal or modification must be performed locally, i.e., site-controlled and material selective through an additional laser processing step. For that ultrashort laser pulses with durations in the femtosecond and picosecond range can provide unique advantages and capabilities in industrially scalable schemes. This article reviews the current state of the research and corresponding industrial transfer related to the structuring of thin films by ultrashort pulsed lasers. It focuses on the pertinent historic developments, reveals the relevant physical and chemical effects, explores the ultimate limits, and discusses selected industrial and scientific applications.
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DOBA, EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, IZUM, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
Laser-induced periodic surface structures (LIPSS) are a simple and robust route for the nanostructuring of solids that can create various surface functionalities featuring applications in optics, ...medicine, tribology, energy technologies, etc. While the current laser technologies already allow surface processing rates at the level of m
/min, industrial applications of LIPSS are sometimes hampered by the complex interplay between the nanoscale surface topography and the specific surface chemistry, as well as by limitations in controlling the processing of LIPSS and in the long-term stability of the created surface functions. This Perspective article aims to identify some open questions about LIPSS, discusses the pending technological limitations, and sketches the current state of theoretical modelling. Hereby, we intend to stimulate further research and developments in the field of LIPSS for overcoming these limitations and for supporting the transfer of the LIPSS technology into industry.
Laser texturing is an emerging technology for generating surface functionalities on basis of optical, mechanical, or chemical properties. Taking benefit of laser sources with ultrashort (fs) pulse ...durations features outstanding precision of machining and negligible rims or burrs surrounding the laser-irradiation zone. Consequently, additional mechanical or chemical post-processing steps are usually not required for fs-laser surface texturing (fs-LST). This work aimed to provide a bridge between research in the field of tribology and laser materials processing. The paper reviews the current state-of-the-art in fs-LST, with a focus on the tribological performance (friction and wear) of specific self-organized surface structures (so-called ripples, grooves, and spikes) on steel and titanium alloys. On the titanium alloy, specific sickle-shaped hybrid micro-nanostructures were also observed and tribologically tested. Care is taken to identify accompanying effects affecting the materials hardness, superficial oxidation, nano- and microscale topographies, and the role of additives contained in lubricants, such as commercial engine oil.
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IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UL, UM, UPUK
This reprint is the printed edition of the Special Issue published in Materials. The reprint provides an overview on current international research activities in the field of advanced pulse laser ...machining technology. It covers fundamental and applied aspects and collects contributions of renowned scientists from academics and industries working in the fields of laser processing, materials science, physics, chemistry, and engineering in order to foster the current knowledge and present new ideas for future applications and new technologies.
In this study, femtosecond laser-induced sub-micrometer structures are generated to modify polyethylene (PE) surface topographies. These surfaces were subjected to bacterial colonization studies with ...Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus as test strains. The results reveal that the nanostructures do not influence S. aureus coverage, while the adhesion of E. coli is reduced.
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IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UL, UM, UPUK
The ablative laser processing with ultrashort pulsed laser beams may cause secondary emission of hazardous X-rays. While the effect has recently been proven to be considered in working safety ...regulations when processing technical materials, such as metals, the X-ray emission rates during the ablative processing of biological tissue materials are widely unexplored yet. Therefore, biological materials like water, isotonic saline solution, pig eyes, and human teeth were ablated with ultrashort laser pulses of 1030 nm wavelength, 600 fs pulse duration and 5 kHz pulse repetition rate, aiming to mimic typical surgery situations. Simultaneously,
in-situ
X-ray dose rate measurements were performed at a short distance from the plasma to display potential X-ray emission. For all four studied biological materials, our measurements prove the secondary emission of laser-induced X-rays.
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DOBA, EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, IZUM, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ