Impulse coupling to aluminum resulting from Nd:glass laser irradiation induced material removal

Abstract

The properties of the impulse coupling coefficient for long-pulse Nd:glass laser irradiation to aluminum are reported. Most significant is an anticorrelation between this coefficient and the mass of the material removed by the irradiation. A model is suggested which shows that this property may be related to the convergence or divergence of the laser beam as it penetrates the material. When using long-pulse irradiation, the impulse coupling coefficient does not depend on the initial conditions of the surface finish. Data are presented which also demonstrate the dependence of the impulse coupling coefficient on both the incident intensity and energy density.