Ultraviolet nanosecond laser ablation of polyimide with thermal and nonthermal effects near threshold fluence

Abstract

Typically, a 355 nm laser is not sufficient for inducing photochemical ablation and leads to photothermal effects such as melting and recasting. Consequently, most previous studies on the irradiation of polyimide (PI) with such lasers have focused on temperature distribution on the surface and variations in the absorption properties of PI depending on the temperature and time. Herein, the authors demonstrate ablation without thermal effects on the surface of PI using a 355 nm pulse nanosecond laser near the threshold fluence. For ablation without thermal effects, the ablated and nonablated areas can be clearly distinguished in the area exposed to the laser. The interface between these areas, that is, the ablation shape, became wider with increasing laser fluence, even when the spot size remained unchanged; also, the shape of the ablated area was related to the laser intensity distribution. Ablation with thermal effects began to appear in the nonablated areas at higher laser fluence. This study shows that PI, which is physically stable and relatively inexpensive, can be used to develop cation exchange membranes, which can be applied to organic flow cells as well as microbial fuel cells.