  Thin coatings of Chromium oxide have been used for applications as absorbing
material in solar cells, as protections for magnetic data recording devices and
as shields in flexible solar cells. Thin coatings of pure chromium were vacuum
deposited on a glass substrate using hot electrons from tungsten filament.
These coatings were then treated with a nanosecond and femtosecond laser in
ambient conditions. The microstructure, morphology and the color of the
coatings treated with laser sources were modified and there was a formation of
an oxide layer due to the heat dissipation on the chromium coating from the
energetic photons. High-resolution scanning electron microscope studies showed
the morphological evolution that are directly correlated with the laser fluence
of both the nanosecond and femtosecond lasers. This morphological evolution was
accompanied by the microstructural change as observed from the x-ray
diffraction patterns, the chromaticity response of the coating was studied by
UV-Vis spectrometer and the response of the coating in the visible region
evolved with the laser fluences. The Rutherford backscattering depth profiling
of the laser treated coatings revealed the diffusion of oxygen atoms in the
coating as a result of laser treatment fluence.
