Maxime Jacquot

Micromachining along a curve: Femtosecond laser micromachining of curved profiles in diamond and silicon using accelerating beams

We report femtosecond laser micromachining of micron-size curved structures using tailored accelerating beams. We report surface curvatures as small as 70u2009μm in both diamond and silicon, which demonstrates the wide applicability of the technique to materials that are optically transparent or opaque at the pump laser wavelength. We also report the machining of curved trenches in silicon. Our results are consistent with an ablation-threshold model based on calculated local beam intensity, and we also observe asymmetric debris deposition which is interpreted in terms of the optical properties of the incident accelerating beam.

Barium fluoride whispering-gallery-mode disk-resonator with one billion quality-factor

We demonstrate a monolithic optical whispering-gallery-mode resonator fabricated with barium fluoride (BaF₂) with an ultra-high quality (Q) factor above 10⁹ at 1550 nm, and measured with both the linewidth and cavity-ring-down methods. Vertical scanning optical profilometry shows that the root mean square surface roughness of 2 nm is achieved for our mm-size disk. To the best of our knowledge, we show for the first time that one billion Q-factor is achievable by precision polishing in relatively soft crystals with mohs hardness of 3. We show that complex thermo-optical dynamics can take place in these resonators. Beside usual applications in nonlinear optics and microwave photonics, high-energy particle scintillation detection utilizing monolithic BaF₂ resonators potentially becomes feasible.

Kerr optical frequency comb generation in strontium fluoride whispering-gallery mode resonators with billion quality factor.

We report the fabrication for the first time of a strontium fluoride (SrF(2)) whispering-gallery mode resonator with quality factor in excess of 1 billion. The millimeter-size disk-resonator is polished until the surface roughness decreases down to a root-mean square value of 1.2 nm, as measured with a vertical scanning profilometer. We also demonstrate that this ultrahigh Q resonator allows for the generation of a normal-dispersion Kerr optical frequency comb at 1550 nm.

High resolution group refractive index measurement by broadband supercontinuum interferometry and wavelet-transform analysis

In this paper we propose group refractive index measurement with a spectral interferometric set-up using a broadband supercontinuum generated in an air-silica Microstructured Optical Fibre (MOF) pumped with a picosecond pulsed microchip laser. This source authorizes high fringes visibility for dispersion measurements by Spectroscopic Analysis of White Light Interferograms (SAWLI). Phase calculation is assumed by a wavelet transform procedure combined with a curve fit of the recorded channelled spectrum intensity. This approach provides high resolution and absolute group refractive index measurements along one line of the sample by recording a single 2D spectral interferogram without mechanical scanning.

Broadband supercontinuum interferometer for high-resolution profilometry

In this paper, it is shown that a white light supercontinuum source generated in an air-silica microstructured optical fiber pumped with picosecond pulses offers the possibility to improve fringes visibility in interferometric acquisitions. Consequently, this source combined with a spectral interferometer, reaches high-resolution profilometric measurements. Phase calculation based on seven point algorithm can perform theoretically a subnanometer resolution. This method provides a one line profile of large surfaces from the analysis of a single shot image, without any mechanical scanning.

Processing of white-light correlograms: simultaneous phase and envelope measurements by wavelet transformation

A common procedure of profilometry by means of white light interferometry is to scan one interferometer arm step by step. In this way, the intensity detected for each surface point reproduces the autocorrelogram of the light source, which is used for the determination of the absolute phase between a reference position and the zero optical path difference position. Phase changes due to reflection on the inspected surface produces a shift of the interference fringes with respect to the coherence envelope. If those phase changes vary from points to points, artifacts can be introduced in the profile reconstruction. We propose to measure simultaneously the interferometric phase and the shift of the interference fringes with respect to the coherence envelope. That processing is based on a wavelet transformation of the sampled light source correlograms and leads to complementary information that describes more completely the optical behavior of surfaces.

High aspect ratio micro-explosions in the bulk of sapphire generated by femtosecond Bessel beams.

Femtosecond pulses provide an extreme degree of confinement of light matter-interactions in high-bandgap materials because of the nonlinear nature of ionization. It was recognized very early on that a highly focused single pulse of only nanojoule energy could generate spherical voids in fused silica and sapphire crystal as the nanometric scale plasma generated has energy sufficient to compress the material around it and to generate new material phases. But the volumes of the nanometric void and of the compressed material are extremely small. Here we use single femtosecond pulses shaped into high-angle Bessel beams at microjoule energy, allowing for the creation of very high 100:1 aspect ratio voids in sapphire crystal, which is one of the hardest materials, twice as dense as glass. The void volume is 2 orders of magnitude higher than those created with Gaussian beams. Femtosecond and picosecond illumination regimes yield qualitatively different damage morphologies. These results open novel perspectives for laser processing and new materials synthesis by laser-induced compression.

Ultrafast Bessel beams for high aspect ratio taper free micromachining of glass

Although ultrafast lasers have demonstrated much success in structuring and ablating dielectrics on the micrometer scale and below, high aspect ratio structuring remains a challenge. Specifically, microfluidics or lab-on-chip DNA sequencing systems require high aspect ratio sub-10 μm wide channels with no taper. Micro-dicing also requires machining with vertical walls. Backside water assisted ultrafast laser processing with Gaussian beams allows the production of high aspect ratio microchannels but requires sub-micron sample positioning and precise control of translation velocity. In this context, we propose a new approach based on Bessel beams that exhibit a focal range exceeding the Rayleigh range by over one order of magnitude. An SLM-based setup allows us to produce a Bessel beam with central core diameter of 1.5 μm FWHM extending over a longitudinal range of 150 μm. A working window in the parameter space has been identified that allows the reliable production of high aspect ratio taper-free microchannels without sample translation. We report a systematic investigation of the damage morphology dependence on focusing geometry and energy per pulse.

Arbitrary shaping of on-axis amplitude of femtosecond Bessel beams with a single phase-only spatial light modulator

Arbitrary shaping of the on-axis intensity of Bessel beams requires spatial modulation of both amplitude and phase. We develop a non-iterative direct space beam shaping method to generate Bessel beams with high energy throughput from direct space with a single phase-only spatial light modulator. For this purpose, we generalize the approach of Bolduc et al. to non-uniform input beams. We point out the physical limitations imposed on the on-axis intensity profile for unidirectional beams. Analytical, numerical and experimental results are provided.

Deviation from threshold model in ultrafast laser ablation of graphene at sub-micron scale

We investigate a method to measure ultrafast laser ablation threshold with respect to spot size. We use structured complex beams to generate a pattern of craters in CVD graphene with a single laser pulse. A direct comparison between beam profile and SEM characterization allows us to determine the dependence of ablation probability on spot-size, for crater diameters ranging between 700 nm and 2.5 μm. We report a drastic decrease of ablation probability when the crater diameter is below 1 μm which we interpret in terms of free-carrier diffusion.