Molecular dynamics simulation of heat transfer and phase change during laser material interaction

In this work, heat transfer and phase change of an argon crystal irradiated by a picosecond pulsed laser are investigated using molecular dynamics simulations. The result reveals no clear interface when phase change occurs, but a transition region where the crystal structure and the liquid structure co-exist. Superheating is observed during the melting and vaporizing processes. The solid-liquid interface is found to move with a velocity of hundreds of meters per second, and the vapor is ejected from the surface with a vapor front velocity, of hundreds of meters per second.