Absolute measurements of non-linear absorption near LIDT at 193 nm

Previous investigations indicate that oxide-coatings exhibit non-linear absorption phenomena below 200 nm. Hereby, absorption data of Al₂O₃ thin film coatings has been determined absolutely by laser calorimetry (LCA) at 193 nm in the low fluence regime. As an alternative, on the basis of the pulsed surface thermal lens technique (STL), photothermal measurements allow to determine the absorption relatively at fluence levels both in the subdamage fluence range far from the damage onset and close to the LIDT. By combining the two measurement techniques, the absolute determination of linear as well as multiphoton absorption can be achieved also in the vicinity of the laser damage fluences. This is of crucial interest because the initiation of damage onset can be observed immediately. Absolute absorption data of Al₂O₃ coatings at different laser fluences stating of some mJoule/cm² will be presented for the wavelength 193 nm. Thus, the correlation between the increase of absorption and the onset of breakdown can be illustrated impressively. The evaluation and discussion of the experimental results are focused on the degree of non-linearity of the investigated absorption behavior of oxide single layers initiating the optical breakdown of UV oxide coatings.