Laser-Induced Desorption of co-deposited Deuterium in Beryllium Layers on Tungsten

•Complete D desorption (i.e. >99%) possible by a single laser pulse from deuterium-rich 1 µm thick Be layers (25–30 at% D) produced by High Power Impulse Magnetron Sputtering (HiPIMS) on W.•Minimal requirements for complete Laser Induced Desorption (LID): 200–300 MW/m² absorbed intensity for 5 ms and 10 ms pulse duration, equivalent to ≈ 1.5 MJ/m2 energy density or a heat flux factor of ≈ 20 MW√s/m2; 1 ms pulse duration yields only about 80% desorption.•Local delamination of microscopic Be layer fragments (≈ 10–20 µm in size) on at least 11% of laser spot area occurred.•Unavoidable formation of cracked Be hills and cracks of the Be layer.