%0 Journal Article
%K USA
%K Pulse
%K Gap
%K Band gap
%K Evaporation
%K Experimental
%K Material
%K Ablation
%K Laser
%K Laser ablation
%K Laser ablation
%K Time-resolved
%K Time
%K Ca
%K Glass
%K Glasses
%K Plasma
%K Number
%K Pulses
%K Single
%K C
%K Mechanism
%K Mechanisms
%K Femtosecond
%K Excitation
%K Electron number densities
%K Picosecond
%K Density
%K Nanosecond
%K Laser material interaction
%K Electron
%K Electron number density
%K Nm
%K Number density
%K Order
%K Ha
%K Femtosecond laser
%K Circulation
%K Irradiation
%K Physics
%K Evolution
%K L
%K Band
%K Electronic excitation
%K Electronic-excitation
%K FS
%K Imaging
%K Superconductor thin-films
%K Time scales
%K Time-resolved imaging
%A Xianglei Mao
%A Samuel S Mao
%A Richard E Russo
%B Applied Physics Letters
%D 2003
%F Laser
%G eng
%N 5
%P 697-699
%R 10.1063/1.1541947
%T Imaging femtosecond laser-induced electronic excitation in glass
%V 82
%2 LBNL-52021
%8 02/2003
%! Appl. Phys. Lett.
%X <p>While substantial progress has been achieved in understanding laser ablation on the nanosecond and picosecond time scales, it remains a considerable challenge to elucidate the underlying mechanisms during femtosecond laser material interactions. We present experimental observations of electronic excitation inside a wide band gap glass during single femtosecond laser pulse (100 fs, 800 nm) irradiation. Using a femtosecond time-resolved imaging technique, we measured the evolution of a laser-induced electronic plasma inside the glass and calculated the electron number density to be on the order of 10<sup>19</sup> cm<sup>-3</sup>.</p>