Open AccessImpulse measurement of laser induced ablation in a vacuum
Author(s) -
K. Tsuno,
Satoshi Wada,
T. Ogawa,
Toshikazu Ebisuzaki,
Tadanori Fukushima,
Daisuke Hirata,
Jun Yamada,
Yuki Itaya
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
optics express
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.394
H-Index - 271
ISSN - 1094-4087
DOI - 10.1364/oe.399119
Subject(s) - impulse (physics) , optics , laser , ablation , materials science , laser ablation , fluence , physics , quantum mechanics , aerospace engineering , engineering
An impulse measurement system based on a simple pendulum is newly developed. The system has a resolution of 10 -7 Ns for ablation events induced by a single laser at a pulse rate of 2 Hz or less. For ablation events at 10 Hz and above, the system can record the impulse as an average force. The impulse generated by a Nd:YAG pulse laser irradiating a 7075 aluminum alloy is investigated in vacuum. The impulse arises at 3 J/cm 2 and the momentum coupling factor, C m , plateaus at approximately 20 μNs/J over a range of 5 to 50 J/cm 2 without producing a plasma shielding effect. C m is characterized by only fluence independent of pulse width in the range of 10 to 20 ns. This result indicates that it should be feasible to deorbit a 150 kg abandoned satellite at an altitude of 1200 km using a chaser satellite equipped with a 100 W laser.