Abstract
We directly observe the charge distributions and resulting electric fields present during the earliest stages of laser ablation of a Si (100) surface by using femtosecond electron pulses as a probe. We find the magnitude of the field to be just 3 ps after an excitation pulse of . By fitting the data to a simple model, we determine that the excitation results in the rapid emission of . These experiments provide new insights into the nature of the ablation process and the behavior of charged particles involved in it.
- Received 8 May 2008
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.78.081403
©2008 American Physical Society