Lana L. Wong

Thermal annealing of laser damage precursors on fused silica surfaces

Abstract. Previous studies have identified two significant precursors of laser damage on fused silica surfaces at fluences <35  J/cm2: photoactive impurities from polishing and surface fractures. We evaluate isothermal heating as a means of remediating the defect structure associated with surface fractures. Vickers indentations are applied to silica surfaces at loads between 0.5 and 10 N, creating fracture networks. The indentations are characterized before and following thermal annealing under various time and temperature conditions using confocal time-resolved photo-luminescence (CTP) imaging, and R/1 damage testing with 3-ns, 355-nm laser pulses. Improvements in the damage thresholds with reductions in CTP intensity are observed at temperatures well below the glass transition temperature (Tg). The damage threshold on 0.5-N indentations improves from <8 to >35  J/cm2 after annealing at approximately 750°C. Larger fracture networks require longer or higher temperature treatment to achieve similar results. At an annealing temperature >1100°C, optical microscopy indicates morphological changes in some of the fractures surrounding the indentations, although remnants of the original fractures are still observed. We demonstrate the potential of using isothermal annealing to improve the laser damage resistance of silica optics, and provide a means of further understanding the physics of optical damage and mitigation.

MRF applications: measurement of process-dependent subsurface damage in optical materials using the MRF wedge technique

Understanding the behavior of fractures and subsurface damage in the processes used during optic fabrication plays a key role in determining the final quality of the optical surface finish. During the early stages of surface preparation, brittle grinding processes induce fractures at or near an optical surface whose range can extend from depths of a few μm to hundreds of μm depending upon the process and tooling being employed. Controlling the occurrence, structure, and propagation of these sites during subsequent grinding and polishing operations is highly desirable if one wishes to obtain high-quality surfaces that are free of such artifacts. Over the past year, our team has made significant strides in developing a diagnostic technique that combines magnetorheological finishing (MRF) and scanning optical microscopy to measure and characterize subsurface damage in optical materials. The technique takes advantage of the unique nature of MRF to polish a prescribed large-area wedge into the optical surface without propagating existing damage or introducing new damage. The polished wedge is then analyzed to quantify subsurface damage as a function of depth from the original surface. Large-area measurement using scanning optical microscopy provides for improved accuracy and reliability over methods such as the COM ball-dimple technique. Examples of the techniques use will be presented that illustrate the behavior of subsurface damage in fused silica that arises during a variety of intermediate optical fabrication process steps.

Utilization of magnetorheological finishing as a diagnostic tool for investigating the three-dimensional structure of fractures in fused silica

We have developed an experimental technique that combines magnetorheological finishing (MRF) and microscopy to examine fractures and/or artifacts in optical materials. The technique can be readily used to provide access to, and interrogation of, a selected segment of a fracture or object that extends beneath the surface. Depth slicing, or cross-sectioning at selected intervals, further allows the observation and measurement of the three-dimensional nature of the sites and the generation of volumetric representations that can be used to quantify shape and depth, and to understand how they were created, how they interact with surrounding material, and how they may be eliminated or mitigated.

Ultrafast photoluminescence as a diagnostic for laser damage initiation

Using high-sensitivity confocal time-resolved photoluminescence (CTP) techniques, we report an ultra-fast photoluminescence (40ps-5ns) from impurity-free surface flaws on fused silica, including polished, indented or fractured surfaces of fused silica, and from laser-heated evaporation pits. This fast photoluminescence (PL) is not associated with slower point defect PL in silica which has characteristic decay times longer than 5ns. Fast PL is excited by the single photon absorption of sub-band gap light, and is especially bright in fractures. Regions which exhibit fast PL are strongly absorptive well below the band gap, as evidenced by a propensity to damage with 3.5eV ns-scale laser pulses, making CTP a powerful non-destructive diagnostic for laser damage in silica. The use of CTP to provide insights into the nature of damage precursors and to help develop and evaluate new damage mitigation strategies will be presented.

Initiation of Laser Damage at Surface Imperfections on Fused Silica Optics

Imperfections on optical surfaces contain fractured, densified and displaced material. After physical isolation, the laser damage susceptibility of specific defect structures has been determined. Fractures, rather than displaced or densified material limits laser damage performance.