Single- and multi-pulse formation of surface structures under static femtosecond irradiation

Femtosecond surface structure modifications are investigated under irradiation with laser pulses of 150 fs at 800 nm, on copper and silicon. We report sub-wavelength periodic structures formation (ripples) with a periodicity of 500 nm for both materials. These ripples are perpendicular to the laser polarization and can be obtained with only one pulse. The formation of these ripples corresponds to a fluence threshold of 1 J/cm(2) for copper and 0.15 J/cm(2) for silicon. We find several morphologies when more pulses are applied: larger ripples parallel to the polarization are formed with a periodicity of 1 mu m and degenerate into a worm-like morphology with a higher number of pulses. In addition, walls of deep holes also show subwavelength and large ripples. (c) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.