Control of processing effects under high-frequency femtosecond laser irradiation on three commercial polymers with different thermal properties

Abstract

The behavior of three commonly used commercial polymers (poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC), poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) and polypropylene (PP)) under high repetition rate (10 kHz -1 MHz) femtosecond (450 fs) laser irradiation at λ=515 nm (1.40 J/cm 2 ) is analysed. A study of how repetition rate affects the heat accumulation effects and the processing outcomes on the surface of these polymers is presented, demonstrating a tailored modulation of ablation depth and modified widths through repetition rate variations at constant values of fluence and number of pulses. Micro Raman analyses are conducted to investigate the induced thermal degradation in the surroundings of the ablated regions for processing at different values of repetition rates.