FEATURE: BEAM CONTROL


ACTION OVER FIVE AXES


Greg Blackman on the latest scanning solutions and software for micromachining


Laser micromachining is now a proven technology, with reliable and reasonably high-power ultrafast pulsed lasers available from a number of suppliers. The control of those pulses is also improving, with new products being developed by scanner firms and laser system manufacturers. Tadas Kildušis, CEO at Direct Machining


Control, a Lithuanian software supplier for laser machines, noted two laser processing trends that DMC has recently been working on: the rise of five-axis laser machining, and the synchronising of galvo scanners with positioning stages. These are borne out by new solutions from scanner provider Scanlab, along with control software Cambridge Technology launched at Photonics West in February. Five-axis laser machining is a ‘big


pressure point for those developing software for laser systems,’ said Kildušis. One challenge laser integrators and


end-users working with five-axis machining with galvo scanning face, he said, is up to five software packages are sometimes necessary to get the part ready. ‘It’s a long process that requires personnel to be trained on high-end programs such as modelling, CAD and 3D texturing software. It’s an ongoing trend to simplify all that for laser machining,’ Kildušis remarked. Other software that might be involved includes drawing software for 2D texture generation, as well as CAM software for


16 LASER SYSTEMS EUROPE SPRING 2020


motion path generation. In some cases there is also separate CAM post-processing and machine control software used, according to Kildušis. ‘While we don’t believe this can be simplified down to one solution any time soon, it could be simplified down to two pieces of software,’ he said, such as CAD software – which is used to design the part – and another package that processes the texturing and facilitates everything for the laser machine. One of the software challenges Kildušis


noted when it comes to engineering a five- axis laser machining application, is wrapping a 2D texture on a 2D surface. All wrapping options provide different distortions, he said, so the most suitable option for certain applications must be selected. Alternatively, the structure needs to be generated in 3D from the start, which is also a really complicated task and often different approaches will only work in a limited set of conditions.


One of the biggest applications of five- axis machining is texturing 3D surfaces with a laser, notably moulds. These moulds can be used to make components for consumer electronics, the automotive and aerospace sectors, and parts for medical devices. Scanlab has been supplying a five-axis


system for drilling helical holes, one of the applications of which is manufacturing wafer probes. Holger Schlüter, head of


business development at Scanlab, said that the market for manufacturing wafer probes is a new one for the company – it has only been selling into this market for a year. Scanlab’s five-axis system can move the beam in X, Y and Z directions, as well as tilt the laser beam. In this way the system can produce tapered holes, either negatively tapered, no taper at all, or positively tapered. It can make square holes of 25 x 25µm with an aspect ratio of 12.5:1, and this can be used for probing silicon wafers before they are diced into individual chips. The holes the laser makes are the guides for the needles that probe the chip. ‘You need a very stable system for drilling


these holes,’ said Schlüter. ‘It’s not only the precision and accuracy of the system, but also the repeatability and long-term stability that has enabled this, because making a probe card interface plate can take up to 60 hours of laser operation.’ The system has been made easier to


use through a GUI with which the user can program the path of the laser beam. Aerotech has also recently released


a five-axis laser scanner, the AGV5D, for micromachining medical components, microelectronics, and automotive parts such as fuel injection nozzles. Other firms, including GF with its ML-5 and ML-10


“Five-axis laser machining is a big pressure point for those developing software for laser systems”


@LASERSYSTEMSMAG | WWW.LASERSYSTEMSEUROPE.COM @researchinfo | www.researchinformation.info


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