The coloration of stainless steel surface due to the formation of spatially periodic structures induced by laser pulses of nanosecond duration is demonstrated. The period of microstructures corresponds to the laser wavelength, and their orientation angle depends on the adjustment of laser polarization. The marking algorithm for the development of authentication patterns is presented. Such patterns provide several levels of protection against falsification (visual, colorimetric and structural) along with high recording speed and capability of automated reading.
Topography-dependent tuning of water wettability was achieved on a stainless steel surface textured by nanosecond-laser pulses at different laser fluences, with the minimal contribution of the surface chemical modification. Such differently-wet neighboring surface spots were demonstrated to drive an autonomous directional water flow. A series of elementary microfluidic devices based on the spatial wetting gradients were designed and tested as building blocks of “green”, energy-saving autonomous microfluidic circuits.
Laser-induced periodic surface structures (LIPSSs) spontaneously appearing on the laser-treated (melted or evaporated) surfaces of bulk solid materials seem to be a well-studied phenomenon. Peculiarities of oxidative mechanisms of LIPSS formation on thin films though are far less clear. In this work, the appearance of oxidative LIPSSs on thin titanium films was demonstrated under the action of commercially available nanosecond-pulsed Yb-fiber laser. The temperature and energy regimes favoring their formation were revealed, and their geometric characteristics were determined. The period of these LIPSSs was found to be about 0.7 λ, while the modulation depth varied between 70 and 110 nm, with high stability and reproducibility. It was shown that LIPSS orientation is rather easily manageable in the regimes of our interest, which could provide a way of controlling their properties.
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