The laser shock cleaning (LSC) process has been shown to be effective for removing submicron-sized contaminant particles from solid surfaces and thus bears strong potential in various applications. In this work, experimental and theoretical analysis are conducted to reveal the underlying physical mechanisms of the LSC process, with emphasis on the laser-induced hydrodynamics and the effect of external gas-jet injection through a nozzle. A two-dimensional theoretical model is proposed for rigorous simulation of the hydrodynamic phenomena occurring in the LSC process. The hydrodynamics computed by the model is in qualitative agreement with experimental observations and reveal the details of the physics involved in the cleaning process. The effect of gas blowing on the cleaning performance is analyzed both experimentally and theoretically. The results indicate that the gas flow can significantly change the hydrodynamics and increase the cleaning efficiency by reducing the chance of particle redeposition. (c) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.