Laser ablation of GaAs in liquid: the role of laser pulse duration

The synthesis of gallium arsenide (GaAs) nanoparticles has attracted wide scientific and technological interest due to the possibility of tuning the GaAs NP (nanoparticle) band gap across the visible spectrum and their consequent use in optoelectronic devices. In recent years, laser ablation in liquid (LAL) has been widely used for the preparation of colloidal solutions of semiconducting and metallic nanoparticles, thanks to its flexibility. With the aim of highlighting the key role played by laser pulse duration on the ablation mechanism and on the properties of the obtained materials, laser ablation of a gallium arsenide target in acetone was performed using laser sources operating in two different temporal regimes: Nd:glass laser (l = 527 nm, pulse duration of 250 fs and frequency repetition rate of 10 Hz) and Nd:YAG laser (l = 532 nm, pulse duration of 7 ns and frequency repetition rate of 10 Hz). The ablation process was studied following the dynamics of the laser induced shock waves (SWs) and cavitation bubbles (CBs) by fast shadowgraphy, showing that CB dimension and lifetime is related to the laser pulse length. A characterization of the obtained materials by TEM (transmission electron microscopy) and microRaman spectroscopy have shown that quite spherical gallium oxide/GaAs nanoparticles can be obtained by nanosecond laser ablation. On the other hand, pure polycrystalline GaAs nanoparticles can be produced by using an ultrashort laser source.