Femtosecond laser fabrication of nanostructures in silica glass.
A femtosecond laser beam focused inside fused silica and other glasses can modify the refractive index of the glass. Chemical etching and atomic-force microscope studies show that the modified region can have a sharp-tipped cone-shaped structure with a tip diameter as small as 100 nm. Placing the structure near the bottom surface of a silica glass sample and applying a selective chemical etch to the bottom surface produces clean, circular, submicrometer-diameter holes. Holes spaced as close to one another as 1.4 microm are demonstrated.
Taylor
R S
RS
Institute for Microstructural Sciences, Natural Research Council, Building M-23A, Montreal Road, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0R6, Canada. rod.taylor@nrc.ca
Hnatovsky
C
C
Simova
E
E
Rayner
D M
DM
Bhardwaj
V R
VR
Corkum
P B
PB