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Laser Beam Welding
Welding History Main Page
Laser
Beam Welding is a technique in manufacturing whereby two or more pieces of
material (usually metal) are joined by together through use of a laser beam.
The laser beam is a coherent (single phase) light of a single wavelength (monochromatic). The laser beam has low beam divergence and high energy content and thus will create heat when is strikes a surface.
Lasers are utilized in metalworking for:
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Seam Tracking and Inspection
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Surface Heat Treating
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Welding
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Cutting (metallic and non-metallic materials)
Laser Types
There are two primary types of lasers used in welding and cutting:
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Gas lasers (CO2 type)
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Solid state lasers (Nd:YAG type)
CO2 lasers use a mixture of high purity carbon dioxide with helium and nitrogen as the lasing medium. Here are some of the key characteristics for CO2 lasers: Infrared (10.6 micro-meters); Beam transmission by mirror only (not fiber optic); Cutting lasers are typically from 0.5 to 2 kw; Difficulties in cutting/welding reflective materials (e.g., Aluminum or copper); Can cut non-metallic materials; High cutting speed possible.
Nd:YAG lasers use a solid bar of yttrium aluminum garnet doped with neodymium as the lasing medium. Here are some of the key charateristics for Nd:YAG lasers:
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Infrared (1.06 micro-metres)
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Beam transmission by optical fiber possible
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Available to 2 kw
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Wavelength absorbed well by metallic materials (including Al & Cu)
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Not suitable for cutting non-metallic materials
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Good for fine work, but cutting speeds are generally lower than CO2
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Both CO2 and Nd:YAG lasers can operate in either continuous or pulsed operating modes.
Licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. Material from the Wikipedia article "Welding". This article is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
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