Significance  Since nanoparticle materials have at least one dimension at the nanoscale, they exhibit many unique properties in optics, thermal, electrical, magnetic, mechanical and chemical aspects. Typically, the preparation of nanoparticles relies on chemical or physical vapor deposition, sol-gel method, electrochemical deposition and other conventional techniques. Although these methods perform well in specific applications, they have many limitations, such as high cost, time-consuming, complex equipment, or difficulty in achieving large-area and complex shape growth. As an emerging and efficient technique, laser processing of nanoparticles can achieve efficient and controllable preparation of nanoparticle materials by utilizing the characterizations of local high temperature and high-pressure environment of high-energy laser beams or the rapid heating and cooling of laser processing, as well as regulating factors of laser type, processing parameters, and precursor materials/solutions.

Progress  First, the basic principles of the interaction between lasers and materials are introduced, including the interaction between matter and light and the redistribution of laser energy during laser-material interaction. The interaction process is analyzed from different time scales and microscopic molecular scales, leading to the control of the reaction progress during the experiment. Then, the latest research progress and characteristics of five common laser processing techniques for nanoparticle are reviewed, including laser-induced transfer, laser-induced hydro-thermal growth, pulsed laser deposition, pulsed laser ablation in liquids and laser in-situ induction and deposition. In particular, the formation rules and the size-influence mechanism of nanoparticles prepared by the five laser processing techniques are summarized. By combining the advantages of various laser processing techniques, it is possible to precisely control the surface properties of materials, resulting in the efficient fabrication of nanostructured materials and devices with multifunction.

Conclusions and Prospects  In the frontier field of micro-nano manufacturing, laser processing techniques for nanoparticle is showing its unique application potential. By accurately adjusting the processing process, laser processing technique can efficiently realize the reduction, additive and conversion processing of nanoparticles, and then construct various functional micro-nano devices. In the future, with the advancement of science and technology, the research on laser processing of nanoparticles is developing in the following key directions: 1) the interdisciplinary cooperation of optics, chemistry, medicine, robotics and other disciplines is promoting the development of advanced micro-devices; 2) the in-depth study of the interaction mechanism between laser and matter is bringing revolutionary breakthroughs to laser processing technique. Combining computer-aided design and machine learning algorithms, laser processing technique is becoming more and more intelligent and automated. In general, laser processing techniques for nanoparticle will play an increasingly important role in the future manufacturing of electronic devices.