Effects of laser operating parameters on piezoelectric substrate micromachining with picosecond laser

Ten picoseconds (200 kHz) ultrafast laser micro-structuring of piezoelectric substrates including AT-cut quartz, Lithium Niobate and Lithium Tantalate have been studied for the purpose of piezoelectric devices application ranging from surface acoustic wave devices, e.g., bandpass filters, to photonic devices such as optical waveguides and holograms. The study examines the impact of changing several laser parameters on the resulting microstructural shapes and morphology. The micromachining rate has been observed to be strongly dependent on the operating parameters, such as the pulse fluence, the scan speed and the scan number. The results specifically indicate that ablation at low fluence and low speed scan tends to form a U-shaped cross-section, while a V-shaped profile can be obtained by using a high fluence and a high scan speed. The evolution of surface morphology revealed that laser pulses overlap in a range around 93% for both Lithium Niobate (LiNbO3) and Lithium Tantalate (LiTaO3) and 98% for AT-cut quartz can help to achieve optimal residual surface roughness. - See more at: http://www.mdpi.com/2072-666X/6/1/19/htm#sthash.pXkt3H6P.dpu