Nanosecond photoacoustic studies on ultraviolet laser ablation of organic polymers

Wide bandwidth polyvinylidenefluoride film piezoelectric transducers have been used to make time-resolved measurements of stress waves generated by ablation and subthreshold thermoelastic mechanisms in excimer laser irradiated polymers. At high fluence, ablation commences within 4-6 ns of the start of the laser pulse and generates short acoustic impulses (∼20 ns) with peak stresses ≥107 Pa (∼100 atm).