The joining of two metals together using laser radiation is a complex process, but the result is a weld of unprecedented quality and mechanical properties. The ability to weld reproducibly at high speed with competitive cost, have made laser welding attractive in many industrial applications extending from the assembly of vehicles to the joining of microelectronic components.

This volume provides the first comprehensive overview of the modern use of ultraviolet laser radiation in the processing of materials. Lasers operating at ultraviolet wavelengths combine the ability to vaporize the most refractory of materials with the precision to ablate micron-sized holes in polymers and remove thin layers from the cornea for corrective surgery of the human eye. This book explores the use of UV laser radiation for the ablation and deposition of metals, insulating solids, polymers, semiconductors and superconductors. It emphasizes the physical mechanisms accompanying these...