Thermal explosion of absorbing inclusions as the mechanism of laser damage to insulator surfaces

An analysis is made of the problem of thermal explosions of inclusions in the surface layer of an insulator. The relationships are obtained for the description of the threshold intensities needed for thermal explosion of an inclusion located in the bulk of an insulator and on its surface. A study is made of the kinetics of thermal explosions. The statistics of laser damage to surfaces and the dependence of the surface damage threshold on the pulse duration and the size of the irradiated region are considered. The results are compared with experimental data.