Controlling mass transport during pulsed-laser ablation in liquids using a high-speed rotating target
Résumé
In its principle, Pulsed-Laser Ablation in Liquids (PLAL) appears as simple and versatile method to produce nanopar-ticles. However, due to its numerous processing parameters and their complex interdependence, this method has
the main disadvantages of i) being hardly reproducible and ii) having a relatively weak productivity. The complexity
of PLAL is well illustrated by the increase of the NPs concentration in the liquid as a function of irradiation time
which may lead to an increasing absorption and/or scattering of the laser beam during the process. In a very recent
paper, we showed that, even when using a laser wavelength which is far from the resonance band, the laser beam
can be strongly attenuated due to the development and slow diffusion of a dense NPs layers in front of the target
as the ablation proceeds. As a consequence, the ablation yield during the process can be considerably reduced.
This raises the question of mass transport in PLAL that has been rarely considered in the literature up to now. In
order to address this issue, we propose a novel design of PLAL setup, based on the irradiation of a high-speed
rotating target. We show how the control of the nanoparticles mass transport allows us to considerably improve
both repeatability and productivity of the process. Furthermore, the configuration of the proposed system enables
the quantification and monitoring of both attenuation factor of the laser beam and ablation yield as a function of
exposure time. Finally, the links between the laser energy attenuation, the ablation yield and repeatability of the
colloids properties are revealed and discussed in terms of mass transport.