Simulations of Femtosecond-Laser Near-Field Ablation Using Nanosphere under Dynamic Excitation

Femtosecond lasers have garnered widespread attention owing to their subdiffraction processing capabilities. However, their intricate natures, involving intrapulse feedbacks between transient material excitation and laser propagation, often present significant challenges for near-field ablation predictions and simulations. To address these challenges, the current study introduces an improved finite-difference time-domain method (FDTD)–plasma model (plasma)–two-temperature model (TTM) framework for simulating the ablation processes of various nanospheres on diverse substrates, particularly in scenarios wherein dynamic and heterogeneous excitations significantly influence optical-field distributions. Initially, FDTD simulations of a single Au nanosphere on a Si substrate reveal that, with transitions in the excitation states of the substrate, the field-intensity distribution transforms from a profile with a single central peak to a bimodal structure, consistent with experimental reports. Subsequently, simulations of a polystyrene nanosphere array on a SiO₂ substrate reveal that different excitation states of the nanospheres yield two distinct modes, namely near-field enhancement and masking. These modes cannot be adequately modeled in the FDTD simulations. Our combined model also considers the intrapulse feedback between the electromagnetic-field distribution resulting from near-field effects and material excitations. Furthermore, the model can quantitatively analyze subsequent electron–phonon coupling and material removal processes resulting from thermal-phase transitions. Consequently, our model facilitates predictions of the femtosecond-laser ablation of single nanospheres or nanosphere arrays with varying sizes and materials placed on substrates subjected to near-field effects.