Laser-induced dielectric to conductor transformation on the surface of aluminium nitride ceramic

In this work formation of conductive lines on the surface of AlN ceramic induced by laser radiation is presented. The transformation to conductive state is done be ablation of the ceramic surface using nanosecond Nd:YAG laser. The dependences of the processing conditions as applied laser fluence and the pulse overlapping on the resistance value are obtained for different surface modifications including straight lines, L, and + shapes. The formation of conductive structures is also studied for application of laser irradiation at the second (532 nm), third (355 nm) and fourth (266 nm) harmonics of the laser system. It is found that the resistance strongly depends on the processing conditions, as at appropriate choice it can be varied in a range of order of magnitude. Processing parameters windows are defined where the structure resistance has a minimal value. The performed analyses based on TEM, SEM, EDX, and Raman spectroscopy indicate that formation of aluminium layer, its oxidation and morphology define the processed areas conductivity. The role of oxidation is also confirmed by analyses of structures fabricated in vacuum, where significant reduction of the resistance is observed. It is found however, that a decrease of the ambient air pressure to 10 Torr is sufficient to obtain structures resistance of the same order as for processing in vacuum. Calculated data about the thickness of the conductive layer is also presented. The obtained results could be used in the design of microelectronic components, resistive elements, and novel optical materials.