Laser Cutting of Thin Plates

Description

The technical problems which need to be solved when starting the study of a laser machining operation are not in the difficulty of reaching an adequate energy density but in the correct evaluation of the behaviour of the material on which one needs to operate. The mechanism of laser energy interaction with matter has been extensively studied and is not the scope of this note. Particular emphasis will however be put on understanding and minimizing the effects of the heat energy remaining in the workpiece after the passage of the laser beam. It will be shown how in certain cases radiative cooling becomes one of the key factors in solving the delicate technical problems encountered. The definition of a procedure to cut with a laser a thin stainless steel grid of large dimensions is then discussed in the second section. No assumption will be made about the laser beam in general apart from assuming that it has been optimized to cut the part of interest.

Additional details