A pulsed CO2 laser-based system, operating at a wavelength of 10.6 mu m, was used as a cleaning tool to remove particles as small as 0.1 mu m from hydrophilic, oxidized silicon surfaces. The laser beam served as a fast heating source to induce the explosive evaporation of a water film deposited on the particle-contaminated surface. The resulting explosive forces were high enough to expel particles from the surface efficiently. The contaminant particles used were 0.1 mu m alumina, 0.1-0.2 mu m silica, and 0.1 mu m polystyrene latex. For each of these, the cleaning efficiency was monitored as a function of the laser fluence, the thickness of the deposited water film and the number of cleaning cycles. Whatever the nature of the particles, the cleaning efficiency was characterized by an upper limit of the energy density, determined to be 1.5 J/cm(2), at which substrate damage occurred. At all lower laser fluences, the removal efficiency was particle-dependent. The thickness of the deposited water film was varied by changing the time of exposure of the surface to water vapor, the vapor how being fixed at 4700 ml/min. An exposure time of 1.5 s was found to be the most effective. Increasing the number of cleaning cycles permitted the evaluation of the effect of the zeta potentials of the particles with respect to that of the surface.