AbstractPlanar laser-induced fluorescence has been used to acquire time sequence images of ground-state, neutral Si and SiO during laser ablation of an Si target in vacuum and in the presence of a background gas at a fluence of 3-4 J/cm2. the SiO images, taken in air, strongly suggest that the observed SiO is created through reaction of silicon with oxygen at the contact front as the plume expands.
