Ultrafast UV laser induced dynamics in dielectric coating materials before laser damage

Abstract

The laser induced ultrafast dynamics in fused silica under few-cycle UV laser excitation is investigated in the present study. Using sub-10 fs UV laser pulses, we characterize the free carrier dynamics in the fused silica before laser damage. After laser excitation, free carrier in the conductive band is found to turn into self-trapped excitons within about 300fs. It is possible that the trapped exciton will result in the incubation effect under the condition of ultrafast high-frequency pulsed UV laser exposure.