Characterization and comparison of low power Nd:YAG pulsed laser ablated bulk of Cu

In this work the characteristics of nanosecond laser ablation of bulk Cu is reported. Bulk Cu is irradiated by a Q-switched Nd:YAG laser at 1064 nm wavelength in atmospheric air in single pulse and sweep mode. The tempera- ture of the plasma, formed on Cu surface during the experiment is calculated from the spectroscopy measurement by relative intensity line method. Formation of copper oxide and changes in topology of the target surface are discussed in details using metallographic and SEM images. The hole drilled by laser pulse on the Cu surface is scanned. It is found out that the dept of the hole is independent of temperature and is affected by the laser peak power.