Fiber Laser Cutting Ceramics

A key factor in determining if a material can be cut is the level of the absorption of the material to 1µm laser light.

Fiber laser cutting ceramics.

The laser energy darkens the ceramic creating a sharp well defined mark. A fiber laser basically does what a co2 laser cannot. The material will get better results when it is cut with oxygen. Bright fiber lasers 1064 nm wavelength and high powered co2 lasers 10600 nm wavelength work well with ceramic and provide fast cutting.

The fiber laser is used for marking or engraving bare metals and marking plastics. When oxygen is used as a processing gas the cutting edge is slightly oxidized. Meta laser cutters are available in 150w 250w 400w and 1000w co2 lasers. For certain ceramics either a co 2 laser or a fiber laser can be used to create a visible mark without removing a significant amount of material.

Using a fiber laser also allows aln ceramic to be cut in its green state before the material is fired. The pulsed fiber laser can also be used to cut a wide range of non metallic materials such as plastics and even rubbers. Laser processing of ceramics is typically performed using a 10 6 or 9 3 micron co 2 laser with some ceramics also absorbing a 1 06 micron fiber laser wavelength. Two types of lasers are ideal for cutting ceramic.

Ceramic is usually separated with the help of pulsed solid state lasers or co 2 lasers and performances between 1 and 600 watt for sublimation cutting. For more information vis. Cutting alumina ceramic using professinal industrial laser s laser cutting system is accurate within just a few microns and faster than any other method of ceramic cutting. The process produces a very high quality cut and although not essential post processing is recommended to enhance the quality yet further.

Cutting ceramic with coherent s meta laser machine tool. Laser engraving of ceramics is achieved using a co 2 laser. Drilling and engraving of ceramic is also possible with equally high quality and effective processing. The two most common cutting techniques are.

For plates with a thickness of up to 4mm nitrogen can be used as the gas for high pressure cutting. The co2 laser can also engrave on glass ceramic stone and coated metals such as anodized aluminum or coated metals. Laser marking can be used to convey information such a serial number or a logo. You can also use femtosecond lasers which offer superior cut quality and precision.

It works by vaporizing the material leaving an indentation or cut into the material. Laser cutting of thin film ceramic is also possible using a co 2 laser producing a clean edge with little discoloration.