Beam-profile modulation of thulium laser radiation applied with multimode fibers and its effect on the threshold fluence to vaporize water

The threshold fluences at which vaporization is initiated at the tip of a multimode fiber that is submerged in water were investigated when free-running and Q-switched thulium laser pulses (γ = 2.01 μm) were applied with different pulse energies. We focused on the quantification of temporal and spatial fluence modulations of the beam profile at the tip of a 400-μm fiber. The spatial and the temporal fluence peaks over the average fluence were measured to as high as 1.5 and 4 in the Q-switched mode, respectively, and 2.5 and 40 in the free-running mode, respectively. The fluence peaks significantly influence the vaporization process. An increase in the threshold fluence with increasing pulse energy was found for the Q-switched mode, but there was a decrease for the free-running mode. Pressure transients of the order of 1 kbar and temperatures higher than 200°C were calculated for a 30-mJ Q-switched laser pulse at the onset of vaporization. Collecting all the data allowed us to trace the thermodynamic path of rapid heating and vaporization in a phase diagram of water.