LASER-INDUCED UNZIPPING - A THERMAL ROUTE TO POLYMER ABLATION

The data presented here show that polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) and polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) can be ablated by the evaporation of solid polymer targets with a pulsed ultraviolet laser. In situ measurements of the plume composition show that the products emitted under laser irradiation are primarily monomer and other species resulting from energetic collisions within the plasma. The similarities between the ablative and pyrolisis mass spectra suggest that ablation of PTFE and PMMA occur through a laser induced pyrolitic decomposition.