Transient Laser-Induced Periodic Surface Structures Revealed by Time-Resolved EUV Diffuse Scattering
Ksenzov D, Capotondi F, Maznev AA, Bencivenga F, Engel D, Fausti D, Foglia L, Gruber R, Jaouen N, Kläui M, Nikolov I, Pancaldi M, Pedersoli E, Pfau B, Gutt C (2026)
Publication Type: Journal article
Publication year: 2026
Journal
DOI: 10.1002/lpor.71817
Abstract
The formation of permanent laser-induced periodic surface structures (LIPSS) on solid surfaces under impulsive laser irradiation above the damage threshold has been the subject of extensive research. Here, we report the formation of transient quasi-periodic surface modulation patterns under femtosecond laser irradiation at fluences well below the ablation threshold. Time-resolved extreme ultraviolet scattering measurements reveal distinct reciprocal-space features similar to those observed for permanent LIPSS, but that dissipate on a timescale of hundreds of picoseconds. We show that the observed transient surface displacement patterns responsible for these features arise from thermal expansion driven by the spatial modulation of absorbed laser energy caused by scattering of the laser radiation by surface roughness. Moreover, we present an analytical model able to capture the main experimental observations. We experimentally demonstrate that such transient LIPSS-like responses arise in a broad class of metallic thin film and multilayer systems under ultrafast low-fluence irradiation.
Authors with CRIS profile
Involved external institutions
Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz (JGU)
Germany (DE)
Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste S.C.p.A.
Italy (IT)
Max-Born-Institut für Nichtlineare Optik und Kurzzeitspektroskopie im Forschungsverbund Berlin e.V. / Max Born Institute for Nonlinear Optics and Short Pulse Spectroscopy
Germany (DE)
Universität Siegen
Germany (DE)
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
United States (USA) (US)
Università degli Studi di Trieste
Italy (IT)
Università Ca’ Foscari
Italy (IT)
Germany (DE)
Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste S.C.p.A.
Italy (IT)
Max-Born-Institut für Nichtlineare Optik und Kurzzeitspektroskopie im Forschungsverbund Berlin e.V. / Max Born Institute for Nonlinear Optics and Short Pulse Spectroscopy
Germany (DE)
Universität Siegen
Germany (DE)
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
United States (USA) (US)
Università degli Studi di Trieste
Italy (IT)
Università Ca’ Foscari
Italy (IT)
How to cite
APA:
Ksenzov, D., Capotondi, F., Maznev, A.A., Bencivenga, F., Engel, D., Fausti, D.,... Gutt, C. (2026). Transient Laser-Induced Periodic Surface Structures Revealed by Time-Resolved EUV Diffuse Scattering. Laser & Photonics Reviews. https://doi.org/10.1002/lpor.71817
MLA:
Ksenzov, Dmitriy, et al. "Transient Laser-Induced Periodic Surface Structures Revealed by Time-Resolved EUV Diffuse Scattering." Laser & Photonics Reviews (2026).
BibTeX: Download