A Review of Effects of Femtosecond Laser Parameters on Metal Surface Properties

Abstract

As a laser technology, the femtosecond laser is used in biomedical fields due to its excellent performance—its ultrashort pulses, high instantaneous power, and high precision. As a surface treatment process, the femtosecond laser can prepare different shapes on metal surfaces to enhance the material’s properties, such as its wear resistance, wetting, biocompatibility, etc. Laser-induced periodic surface structures (LIPSSs) are a common phenomenon that can be observed on almost any material after irradiation by a linearly polarized laser. In this paper, the current research state of LIPSSs in the field of biomedicine is reviewed. The influence of laser parameters (such as laser energy, pulse number, polarization state, and pulse duration) on the generation of LIPSSs is discussed. In this paper, the applications of LIPSSs by femtosecond laser modification for various purposes, such as in functional surfaces, the control of surface wettability, the surface colonization of cells, and the improvement of tribological properties of surfaces, are reviewed.