Surface Engineering by Laser Technology: State of the Art
A special issue of Coatings (ISSN 2079-6412). This special issue belongs to the section "High-Energy Beam Surface Engineering and Coatings".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 October 2026 | Viewed by 217
Editors
Interests: PLD; laser ablation in liquid; nanoparticles; biomaterials; biopolymers
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: self-driving laboratories (SDLs) and new materials for energy device applications; laser induced periodic surface structures (LIPSS); laser ablation and deposition; laser ablation in liquid; nanoparticles; metamaterials; advanced materials; thin films; laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS)
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Laser-based surface engineering has emerged as a key enabling technology for advanced materials design, increasingly intersecting with the field of coating technologies to meet demands for higher performance, sustainability, and multifunctionality. In recent years, rapid progress in laser technology has opened new opportunities to not only tailor surface chemistry, morphology, and functional properties with growing precision but also design and deposit high-quality thin films and coatings with controlled architecture and composition. These advances are particularly relevant in sectors such as energy, biomedicine, electronics, and cultural heritage, where surface-driven phenomena critically determine material performance. At the same time, challenges remain in understanding laser–matter interactions across different time and length scales, as well as in scaling up laser-based coating processes for reliable and cost-effective industrial implementation.
This Special Issue aims to present the most recent advances in tailoring surface properties by laser technologies, with a particular emphasis on their integration within advanced coating strategies. Special focus will be placed on PLD, LIPSSs, and related laser–matter interaction phenomena that enable the fabrication, modification, and functionalization of thin films and coatings. We consider contributions addressing fundamental mechanisms, process optimization, advanced characterization, and innovative applications of laser-engineered coatings and surfaces. Both experimental and theoretical studies are welcome, highlighting the role of laser technologies as versatile and sustainable tools for next-generation coating development and surface functionalization.
Topics of interest include, but are not limited to:
- Pulsed Laser Deposition (PLD) of thin films and coatings;
- Laser-Induced Periodic Surface Structures (LIPSSs);
- Matrix-Assisted Pulsed Laser Evaporation (MAPLE);
- Ultrafast laser–matter interaction mechanisms;
- Functional surface modification and patterning;
- Laser processing for advanced, multifunctional, and protective materials and coatings.
Prof. Dr. Angela De Bonis
Dr. Antonio Santagata
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Coatings is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- laser–matter interaction
- PLD
- ultrafast laser processing
- MAPLE
- nanostructured surfaces
- functional coatings
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