Diffraction of light by surface irregularities and its role in the formation of a periodic surface microrelief

The following quantities were calculated as a function of the surface corrugation period: the difference between the energy evolved in the valleys and at the humps, the amplitudes of a firstorder wave diffracted into an absorbing substance, the phase of this wave, the energy absorbed by the substance, and the intensity of the reflected wave. The calculations were carried out for substances with different absorption coefficients and were then analyzed. The role of diffracted and surface electromagnetic waves in the formation of a periodic surface microrelief on a solid subjected to laser radiation was determined.