Effect of ablation photon energy on the distribution of molecular species in laser-induced plasma from polymer in air

Distribution of molecular species, C2 and CN, in laser-induced plasma from a polymer target (polyvinyl chloride: PVC) was observed for ablation with 266 nm and 355 nm pulses. The influence of ablation photon energy on the distribution of molecular species in the plasma has been thus studied. Time- and space-resolved emission spectroscopy was used for the observation which led to the determination of emission intensity profiles of C2 molecule and CN radical for different delays after the impact of the laser pulse on the target. The profiles of related elements, C, N, and excitation temperature in the plasma were further determined to correlate with those of molecular emission intensity. Different behaviors were clearly observed between plasmas induced by pulses with the two different wavelengths chosen to be close each other in the near ultraviolet (UV). A closer analysis shows the photon energy corresponding to 266 nm pulse of 4.66 eV is larger than bond energies of all the chemical bonds in the studied polymer, while that of 355 nm radiation of 3.49 eV is smaller than or in the same range of the involved bond energies. Observed different behaviors suggest therefore different ablation mechanisms of polymer by laser radiation, and consequently different channels of molecule formation in the plasma. Observation of the morphology of the craters on the target surface left by laser ablation confirmed further different ablation mechanisms with the two used wavelengths.