We report on the fabrication of an axicon by applying a two-step manufacturing process including a 1030 nm femtosecond and a 10.6 µm CO₂ laser. First, the pre-defined axicon geometry is generated by high-precision femtosecond layer-by-layer ablation. In order to meet high surface quality requirements, inevitable stipulated for optical use, the surface of the thus structured axicon is smoothened by a subsequent CO₂ laser polishing process. The finalized axicon fulfills optical quality as the surface roughness R_a is significantly reduced from 0.56 µm to 34 nm. For the evaluation of the optical quality, the axicon is placed in a measurement setup including the femtosecond laser. Comparison between the calculated Bessel beam for an ideal axicon and the quasi-Bessel beam generated and measured by the fabricated axicon reveals excellent agreement, verifying our precise manufacturing method.

We report on the fabrication and evaluation of a sharp tip negative axicon paving the way for applications in high-power ultrashort pulsed laser systems. The negative axicon is manufactured by applying a two-step all laser-based process chain consisting of ultrashort pulsed laser ablation and CO2 laser polishing finishing the component in less than 5 minutes. The finalized negative axicon reveals a surface roughness of 18 nm, fulfilling optical quality. Two measurement setups, including the ultrashort pulsed laser itself, are used to evaluate the formation of Bessel beams in detail. By applying a focusing lens behind the negative axicon, well-developed Bessel beams are generated while their lengths depend on the distance between the negative axicon and the lens. Furthermore, the diameter of the Bessel beams increase strongly with the propagation distance. By adding a second focusing lens, Bessel beams are generated at its focal position, being almost invariant of its position. Hence, the typical Bessel beam intensity distribution is observed over an entire moving range of this second lens of 300 mm. While these Bessel beams show superior quality in terms of sharp peaks with homogeneous concentric rings, only minor deviations in intensity and diameter are observed over the moving range. (C) 2020 Optical Society of America under the terms of the OSA Open Access Publishing Agreement

We present a comprehensive experimental study on laser-induced hierarchic nano-micro periodic surface structures on brass that influences wetting behavior. Using ultra short laser pulses with a wavelength of 1030 nm, large scaled areas completely covered by laser-induced periodic surface structures (LIPSS) are generated with these areas being superimposed by ablation trenches and u-ripples. The influence of the incident laser fluence and pulse overlap on the apparent contact angle for coverage of the surface with distilled water with a surface tension of 74 mN/m are examined with its temporal evolution being observed over a period of two weeks. Our results show an initial drop in the apparent contact angle below the angle of an unstructured surface. Using atomic force microscopy, the roughness factor described by the Wenzel model is determined and compared to the roughness factor given by the apparent contact angle measurement. The ascertained difference in roughness cannot be entirely attributed to the topography of the laser-structured surface. We suggest that changes in the surface chemistry additionally alter the wetting behavior as confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) measurements. On a time scale of days after laser irradiation, the apparent contact angle increases into the hydrophobic range. Both the absolute apparent contact angle and this temporal change reveal a pronounced dependence on the applied laser fluence and pulse overlap. In particular, increasing both, the fluence and the pulse overlap leads to smaller apparent contact angles directly after the irradiation and to higher apparent contact angles after an observation period of two weeks.

We report on an optical setup to generate multi-Bessel beam profiles combining a refractive axicon and a spatial light modulator. Based on their particular beam profile, Bessel beams offer advantageous properties for micro drilling processes and internal volume processing, especially for transparent materials. In addition, the laser power of industrial, ultrashort pulsed lasers has increased significantly over the last few years, offering the possibility for highly efficient processes using multi-spot profiles. Our optical concept combines the dynamic possibilities of beam splitting using a spatial light modulator with the benefits of Bessel beams, which facilitates multi-Bessel beam processing. Beside the simulation and experimental evaluation of the generated multi-Bessel beams, we exemplify the applicability of the developed module for the perforation of thin metal foils by micro drilling.

In this contribution we report on the possibilities of dry and lubricated friction modification introduced by different laser surface texturing methods. We compare the potential of Laser-Induced Periodic Surface Structures and Laser Beam Interference Ablation on 100Cr6 steel in a linear reciprocating ball-on-disc configuration using 100Cr6 steel and tungsten carbide balls with load forces between 50 mN and 1000 mN. For dry friction, we find a possibility to reduce the coefficient of friction and we observe a pronounced direction dependency for surfaces fabricated by Laser Beam Interference Ablation. Furthermore, Laser-Induced Periodic Surface Structures result in a load-dependent friction reduction for lubricated linear reciprocating movements. This work helps to identify the modification behaviour of laser generated micro structures with feature sizes of approximately 1 µm and reveals new possibilities for surface engineering.

We report on the generation of low spatial frequency laser-induced periodic surface structures along straight lines on fused silica by spatially scanning the laser parallel to its polarization direction. The influence of the applied laser fluence and the scanning speed on the periodic surface structures is investigated. The parameter study shows that periodic structures appear in a limited parameter regime of combined fluence and scan speed with periodicities smaller than the laser wavelength. Most strikingly, we observe a perpendicular orientation of the self-assembled periodic structures to the electrical field of the laser, notably a previously unreported result for this dielectric material. This behavior is explained taking into account calculations of surface plasmon polaritons including a Drude model for free carrier excitation within silica by femtosecond laser irradiation.