Model based analysis of the effect of irradiation parameters on the plasma driven thermal fluxes in laser shock processing

Following its first developments in the 1970's, and profiting by the increasing availability of laser sources delivering intensities above 10
⁹
W/cm
²
with pulse energies in the range of several Joules and pulse widths in the range of nanoseconds, laser shock processing (LSP) is being consolidating as an effective technology for the improvement of surface mechanical and corrosion resistance properties of metals and is being developed as a practical process amenable to production engineering [1–2]. However, provided the large amount of physical phenomena arising in the considered processes, their proper development requires a deep understanding of the underlying physics and is absolutely needed for their reliable predictive assessment.