Applications of femtosecond laser induced self-organized planar nanocracks inside fused silica glass

Abstract We review our recent experimental efforts towards developing photonic and biophotonic applications of femtosecond laser induced self‐organized planar nanocracks inside fused silica glass. Our results show that sub‐diffraction limited, periodic, planar cracks can be produced, organized, erased and rewritten and basically controlled inside fused silica glass where they can be diagnosed optically using form birefringence. The high degree of control over these self‐replicated periodic structures allows us to investigate applications in micro‐ and nanofluidics, porous capillaries for biofiltering and rewritable data storage for harsh environments.