Ablation of Organic Polymers and Elemental Solids Induced by Intense XUV Radiation Available to Purchase

The ablation efficiency of organic polymers (polymethylmethacrylate ‐ PMMA, polytetrafluoroethylene ‐ PTFE, polyethyleneterephtalate ‐ PET, and polyimide ‐ PI) and elemental solids (aluminum and silicon) by single pulses of extreme ultraviolet (XUV) radiation emitted from Z‐pinch, plasma‐focus, and laser‐produced plasmas was investigated. The ablation characteristics measured for these plasma‐based sources will be compared with those obtained for irradiation of samples with XUV radiation generated by a free‐electron laser (FEL). The Z‐pinch was driven by the S‐300 pulsed‐power machine (Kurchatov Institute, Moscow) and the plasma focus was realized in the PF‐1000 machine (Institute of Plasma Physics and Laser Microfusion, Warsaw). Higher temperature plasma than with the discharge plasmas was obtained by focusing the near‐infrared (fundamental frequency) beam from the PALS high‐power iodine laser system (Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague) on the surface of a metallic slab target or into single‐ and double‐gas‐puff target placed in a vacuum interaction chamber. Much softer (λ = 86 nm), but monochromatic and more intense, radiation is provided in many (repetition rate = 1 Hz) short pulses by the SASE‐FEL at the Tesla Test Facility (DESY‐HASYLAB, Hamburg). The role of nonthermal processes in XUV ablation will be evaluated. Mechanisms based on the nonthermal processes will be proposed.