Exalted dual-scale surface roughening in laser ablated aluminum capped with a transparent thin film: Wetting and anti-icing behavior

•Use of transparent capping layers as approach to exalt the roughness of laser ablated aluminum.•Use of conventional near infrared lasers for the surface texturing of metals.•Laser induced dual scale surface roughness to control stable wetting and anti-icing behaviors.•Scalable and cheap surface finishing of metal surfaces.