Craters and nanostructures with laser ablation of metal/metal alloy in air and liquid

We report crater formation due to interaction of the high power laser pulse with the brass and aluminum in water and air ambient. The deposited nanostructures on brass near and away from the crater periphery are distinctly different with larger particle size (∼3.5 μm) and broader particle size distribution with full width half maximum (FWHM) ∼2.9 μm close to the crater compared to relatively smaller particle size (∼2.5 μm) and narrower size distribution (FWHM ∼1.7 μm) near the periphery of the crater in air ambient. The morphology of brass in water ambient shows nanosize particles (∼55 nm) and narrow distribution (FWHM ∼7.5 nm) away from the crater with nanorod shaped structures at crater periphery.