LASER-ABLATION OF DOPED POLYMER SYSTEMS

Laser ablation has become a widely recognized tool for materials proce ssing. In the area of polymeric materials, applications of UV lasers f or surface modification, microlithography, cutting, and boring have be en explored. With the addition of dopants into the bulk, it has become possible to sensitize most known classes of polymers for UV laser abl ation at any desired wavelength, including fluoropolymers. Important f eatures of dopant-induced ablation are the reduction of threshold ener gy fluence required for ablation, and the enhancement of the etching r ate by factors higher than ten. In the present review the investigated dopant/polymer systems are summarized and compared. Based on the avai lable information, a general scheme including all relevant pathways is suggested, revealing that in each particular case the dominant mechan ism depends on the specific system under study.