Experimental study on material ablation of dental alumina toughened zirconia ceramics with ps-pulses operating in burst mode

Alumina Toughened Zirconia (ATZ) materials are characterized by high strength and high wear resistance, making them ideal for medical applications. On the other hand, several applications require the treatment of the product surface in order to obtain additional functionalities based on micro and nano structures, for instance using laser-based treatments. In this frame, the processability of these materials is strongly affected by different process parameters, such as pulse duration, burst of pulses and laser wavelength. Thus, the aim of this study is to determine the ablation characteristics of sintered alumina toughened zirconia by varying different process parameters such as laser wavelength, laser fluence and number of pulses per burst. In addition, the different features that are produced are reported. The laser treated samples are characterized using confocal microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and changes in the coloration are investigated using optical spectroscopy. Finally, color changes that are induced during the laser treatment could be reverted using a heat treatment in drying oven.