Femtosecond laser damage resistance of oxide and mixture oxide optical coatings.

We report on the laser damage resistance of ion beam-sputtered oxide materials (Al2O3, Nb2O5, HfO2, SiO2, Ta2O5, ZrO2) and mixtures of Al2O3-SiO2, Nb2O5-SiO2, HfO2-SiO2, Ta2O5-SiO2, and ZrO2-SiO2, irradiated by single 500 fs pulses at 1030 nm. Laser-induced damage threshold (LIDT), refractive index, and bandgaps of the single-layer coatings are measured. For pure oxide materials a linear evolution of the LIDT with bandgap is observed. The results are in accordance with our simulations based on photo-ionization and avalanche-ionization. In the case of mixtures, however, deviations from the previous behaviors are evidenced. The evolution of the LIDT as a function of the refractive index is analyzed, and an empirical description of the relation between refractive index and LIDT is proposed.

Laser-induced damage of hafnia coatings as a function of pulse duration in the femtosecond to nanosecond range.

Laser-damage thresholds and morphologies of hafnia single layers exposed under femtosecond, picosecond, and nanosecond single pulses (1030/1064 nm) are reported. The samples were made with different deposition parameters in order to study how the damage behavior of the samples evolves with the pulse duration and how it is linked to the deposition process. In the femtosecond to picosecond regime, the scaling law of the laser-induced damage threshold as a function of pulse duration is in good agreement with the models of photo and avalanche ionization based on the rate equation for free electron generation. However, differences in the damage morphologies between samples are shown. No correlation between the nanosecond and femtosecond/picosecond laser-damage resistance of hafnia coatings could be established. We also report evidence of the transition in damage mechanisms for hafnia, from an ablation process linked to intrinsic properties of the material to a defect-induced process, that exists between a few picoseconds and a few tens of picoseconds.

Characterization of zirconia- and niobia-silica mixture coatings produced by ion-beam sputtering.

ZrO2-SiO2 and Nb2O5-SiO2 mixture coatings as well as those of pure zirconia (ZrO2), niobia (Nb2O5), and silica (SiO2) deposited by ion-beam sputtering were investigated. Refractive-index dispersions, bandgaps, and volumetric fractions of materials in mixed coatings were analyzed from spectrophotometric data. Optical scattering, surface roughness, nanostructure, and optical resistance were also studied. Zirconia-silica mixtures experience the transition from crystalline to amorphous phase by increasing the content of SiO2. This also results in reduced surface roughness. All niobia and silica coatings and their mixtures were amorphous. The obtained laser-induced damage thresholds in the subpicosecond range also correlates with respect to the silica content in both zirconia- and niobia-silica mixtures.