The influence of the gas environment on morphology and chemical composition of surfaces micro-machined with a femtosecond laser

- We have produced homogeneous patches of micro-structures with a scanning femtosecond Gaussian laser beam on titanium in three different gas environments.
- The particle cloud formed during ablation and the surface chemistry are the determining factors for the structure formation.
- The applied raster scanning method plays an important role on the production of micro-structures.
- In contrast to previous findings we identified oxygen to be the most suitable gas to produce homogeneous structures.
- The process allows simultaneous modification of surface topology and chemistry.