Residual deformations of a dielectric plate illuminated with a laser beam

A report is given of a theoretical and experimental investigation of residual deformations in thin glass plates due to the thermal action of a laser beam, The theory, based on the Maxwell viscoelastic model, explains well the characteristic features of the residual deformations such as the bending of the central plane and bulging of the middle part of the plate. Changes in the nature of residual deformations as a function of the duration of illumination and temperature of the plate are considered.