Femtosecond laser microstructuring of materials

Femtosecond laser pulses at 790 and 395 nm combined with a scanning galvo mirror system have allowed the ablation of high quality microchannels in Pyrex, fused silica and silicon 100.for microchemical applications. While Pyrex and fused silica can be micromachined in the near infrared or UV, silicon can only be micromachined to the required depths of ;50 mm in the near UV where the linear absorption coefficient is much higher. Residual roughness on these materials is -1 mm. q1998 Elsevier Science B.V.