Threshold and morphology of femtosecond laser induced damage in silicon

Summary form only given. Micromachining with femtosecond laser systems has evolved since these lasers have been readily available for a wide set of parameters. However, this application also pushes basic research because a detailed investigation of fundamental processes in the interaction between light and matter is now possible on an ultrashort time scale. It has been shown that ultrashort pulses bear the potential for (laterally and vertically) precise micromachining in transparent dielectrics. In the paper we want to extend the existing investigations on laser induced damage in silicon to pulse durations down to 5 fs. We carried out experiments on a polished [111]-surface of n-doped silicon samples with a Ti:sapphire laser system.