Optical breakdown of quartz glass by XeF laser radiation

The bulk optical strengths of KU1 and KUVI quartz glasses were determined for pulses of 85 ns duration at the wavelength of 353 nm. The damage thresholds of these materials were the same and amounted to 280 GW cm^-2. The optical breakdown thresholds of KU1 at λ = 248 nm and λ = 193 nm, obtained earlier for the same samples under otherwise identical conditions, were used together with the present results to plot the wavelength dependence of the damage threshold of this material. These results showed that nonlinear absorption is the main mechanism responsible for damage to quartz glass in high-intensity ultraviolet laser radiation fields.