Surface evolution of crystalline SrTiO${}_3$, LaAlO${}_3$ and Y${}_3$Al${}_5$O${}_{12}$ targets during pulsed laser ablation

Pulsed laser ablation and deposition find applications in various technological and scientific fields, where precise control of the laser target interaction is crucial for achieving reproducible results. In this work, we investigated pulsed laser ablation of single crystalline (001), (011) and (111) oriented SrTiO${}_3$ (STO), (102) LaAlO${}_3$ (LAO) and (001) Y${}_3$Al${}_5$O${}_{12}$ (YAG) targets. The morphology, oxygen loss, and crack formation on the target surfaces after irradiation with a series of KrF excimer laser pulses will be discussed. The target surface morphology was imaged by atomic force, scanning electron microscopy and confocal laser scanning microscopy. Electron backscatter diffraction analysis and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy were used to analyze the crystallographic changes of the surface and the elemental composition. The target material STO shows a significant crack formation and layer separation increasing with surface crystal orientation from (001) through (011) to (111) and laser pulse fluence. In contrast, the laser-ablated surfaces of LAO show only thin hairline cracks and YAG stays free of cracks in the whole laser fluence range investigated but presents large chipped areas.