BrightLine fi ber also enables the laser to produce small holes and tight contours in thick sheet metal with better exceptional cut quality and productivity in mild steel in the ½–1" (12.7–25.4 mm) thickness range, according to Trumpf. For the future, there are two developments in lasers that bear watching, according to Rogowsky from Trumpf: direct-diodes and short-pulse lasers. “We use 0.96-µm diode lasers to pump resonator material in our disk and fi ber lasers, which produce beams more useful for cutting and other applica- tions,” he explained. Skipping the resonator device and using the diode directly would be an even more effi cient laser beam, greater than 50%, with an even smaller footprint. Currently, beam quality of direct diodes is 8–10 times worse than that from solid-state lasers, which limits their utility in cutting. But each year brings improvements and they have produced excellent quality and speed for applications in weld- ing and cladding operations. The other trend to watch carefully is the short and extremely short-pulsed lasers. These are in contrast to continuous-wave lasers described above in that they concentrate high power in very short bursts of energy. For example, the Trumpf TruMicro 5070 Femto Edition offers pulse duration of 800 ± 200 femtoseconds and pulse energy as high as 200 microjoules, even though the mean power is only 80 watts. Why are they so interesting? “Short-pulse lasers ablate material so fast there is no heat affected zone,” explained Dr. Michael Mielke, Chief Scientist for Raydiance (Petaluma, CA), a company special- izing in femto-duration laser machining. With no heat affected zone, or HAZ, there is no distortion, burring or discoloration that may need postprocess- ing. Raydiance offers three specialized devices using their femtosecond, diode-pumped fi ber-optic lasers—R-Drill, R-Mill, and R-Tube. Micro, precision machining is where their short-
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MfgEngMedia.com
pulse lasers excel, according to Mielke. Replacing EDM, mechanical machining, and continuous wave lasers for drilling holes in fuel injectors, cutting
“In the last three–four years, solid- state 1-µm lasers are showing they are faster in thin metal, up to three times faster in 1–2-mm-thick metal sheets, especially in aluminum or polished stainless.”
stents, and milling precision catheters. “A fuel injec- tor spray hole may only be 200 µm in diameter, but the tolerance needs to be ±1% with a side wall interior roughness of no more than 0.50 µm he said. Productivity is vital—they need to drill one hole per second to meet cost and production targets. “Nothing else but a short-pulse laser can meet these requirements,” he said. “Ours can because of the zero HAZ coupled with speed of ablation.”
Amada America Ph: 877-262-3287 Web site:
www.amada.com
LaserCoil
Ph: 419-592-0050 Web site:
www.lasercoil.com
Laser Mechanisms Ph: 248-474-9480 Web site:
www.lasermech.com/
Raydiance
Ph: 707-559-2100 Web site:
www.raydiance.com
Trumpf
Ph: 860-255-6000 Web site:
www.us.trumpf.com/
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