1. Femtosecond Micromachinning Metals CeramicsDiamond Teeth High Explosives Ultrashort pulses are ideal for micro-machining Ultrashort pulse lasers can precision machine many materials M.D. Feit, A.M. Komashko, A.M. Rubenchik, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Polymers

2. x Threshold for cutting Beam focused to  2 Beam profile Size of hole Ultrashort-pulse micro-machining can make sub-wavelength holes Because high-order nonlinear-optical processes are responsible for cutting, there is effectively a threshold for cutting. This means that careful control of the intensity can yield a very small hole

3. Long pulseShort pulse Long- vs. short-pulse micromachining The main advantages of femtosecond micro machining are: - No thermal damage: High machining quality, heat sensitive material machining - Unmatched accuracy: Down to 100nm (very well defined ablation threshold) - No wavelength dependence: Any material can be machined with the same laser

4. Examples 540 nm Sub-micron holes in stainless steel Femtosecond-Pulse Drilled Hole