Investigation of Femtosecond Laser-assisted Micromachining of Lithium Niobate

Authors

A. Malshe, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville
D. Deshpande, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville
E. Stach, National Center for Electron Microscopy, Lawrence Berkeley Labs
Kamlakar Rajurkar, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Dennis R. Alexander, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow

Date of this Version

2004

Comments

Published in CIRP Annals - Manufacturing Technology, Volume 53, Issue 1, 2004, Pages 187-190.

Abstract

Lithium Niobate has a potential for applications in electronics and communication industries due to its unique electro-optical, piezoelectric and nonlinear properties. Femtosecond laser machining offers the best alternative to machine the mechanically fragile and optically delicate lithium niobate crystal. This paper reports a study of the effect of femtosecond laser machining on the surface integrity of lithium niobate. The transmission electron microscopy reveals a 100nm thin amorphous region and a void. The chemical analysis shows a loss of lithium and oxygen from the surface and sub-surface. Optical illumination facilitates the selective readout of the written spots of 2 microns size.