LASER INSIGHTS NO.

1
Fundamentals of Laser Welding
Over the past 30 years, laser welding has been used in an increasing number of manufacturing applications in the medical, automotive, electronics, aerospace, solar and many other industries. In the 1970's laser welding was performed with carbon dioxide gas lasers. These lasers emitted at a wavelength of 10.6 microns. This laser source had several drawbacks for welding applications. Because most metals do not readily absorb the10.6 micron wavelength, considerable heat was introduced into the part. This excess heat often caused distortion or other thermal damage - particularly in thinner materials. Furthermore, this wavelength can only be delivered with fixed optics and cannot be delivered with a flexible fiber optic cable. Nd:YAG: The solid state Nd:YAG laser emerged during the 1980's as the preferred welding laser for metals up to 1mm thick. The shorter wavelength (1.064 microns) of the YAG laser is more readily absorbed by metals and introduces less heat or thermal damage. Additionally, the YAG laser beam may be delivered to the weld zone with either fixed optics or the energy may be coupled into a flexible fiber optic beam delivery cable. This is a significant advantage over the carbon dioxide laser since the Nd:YAG laser power supply could be located several meters from the laser weld site or workstation. Pulsed YAG lasers used for spot and seam welding applications are available from 10-500 watts average power. The high peak power of the pulsed YAG is the preferred approach for achieving deep penetration with minimal heat affected zone. This laser is also suited for welding more reflective metals such as aluminum, gold or silver. (See Figure 1: Electro-magnetic spectrum). Excimer Lasers Tripled Doubled YAG YAG YAG Fiber .355 .532 1 CO2 Laser 10.6

Fig. 1.

Gamma

X-Rays

UV

Visible

Infrared

Microwave

TV

Radio

Fiber Lasers: The recent introduction of fiber laser technology has provided manufacturers with another laser welding option. Fiber lasers offer a smaller spot diameter compared to Nd:YAG. This results in higher power and energy densities than those produced by Nd:YAG lasers. Additionally, the "wall plug efficiency" of the fiber laser is upwards of 30% compared to 2-3% for Nd:YAG. Fiber laser output may also be delivered to the work piece via a flexible fiber optic cable. Fiber lasers offer excellent beam qualities and are scalable to multi-kW power levels. Finally, unlike pulsed Nd:YAG lasers that require the flash lamp to be changed after several million shots, the fiber laser diode array may last 50,000 hours or more before needing replacement. There are some disadvantages however. Fiber lasers operate in the continuous wave or CW mode and therefore do not provide high peak power output. This disadvantage is most noticeable for spot welding applications and for welding aluminum or other highly reflective metals. As a result, both fiber lasers and pulsed Nd:YAG laser should be considered and evaluated.

How does a laser work? The word "LASER" is an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation. Creation of laser light requires several key elements. There are three (3) major elements in a typical welding laser system. / Power supply / Resonator o Lasing medium o Pump source / Beam delivery system Power Supply: The power supply generates the high voltage and power to drive the resonator assembly and achieve the average power and peak power needed for laser material processing applications. Laser controls provide the operator means to establish input voltage (V), pulse width (milli-seconds), pulse repetition rate (pulses per second), pulse energy (Joules), average power (watts), peak power (kilo-watts) and other laser output functions. The power supply is connected to the Resonator or laser head, via an electrical umbilical. Resonator: The resonator (also called a "laser head") is an optical engine. It consists of a pair of opposing reflective mirrors. The REAR mirror is typically 98-100% reflective. The FRONT mirror is partially reflective and partially transmissive. This allows the laser energy to reflect off the rear mirror and delivered to the work piece via the partially transmissive front mirror. The resonator contains a pump chamber that contains the lasing medium and pump source. Cooling water is circulated inside the pump chamber to keep the lasing medium and flash lamp under stable temperature conditions. Low average power lasers usually have a closed loop water-to-air cooling systems. Higher power lasers require water-to-water cooling. The Lasing Medium: The lasing medium contains a small amount of a lasing medium (also called the "active element"). In the case of Nd:YAG lasers, Neodymium (Nd) is the active element. The Yttrium, Aluminum, Garnet (YAG) components form a host crystal that is precision machined into a laser rod. YAG laser rods typically contain only 1-3% Neodymium. The lasing medium in a fiber laser is Ytterbium. Pump Source: The pump source "stimulates" the lasing medium until the lasing thresh hold is reached and energy is emitted to conduct useful work. The pump source for pulsed YAG lasers is a flash lamp. The pump source for a fiber laser is a laser diode array. Laser Characteristics: Lasers photons exhibit three fundamental characteristics. Coherent -same wavelength (frequency or color) Output in phase Photons travel in the same direction Laser Welding: Most spot and seam welding applications are performed with pulsed Nd:YAG or Fiber lasers. Because of the small HAZ, YAG these lasers are ideally suited for welding very thin metals such as small diameter wires or heat sensitive components. These performance characteristics are particularly critical in the medical device industry. Pacemakers, nerve stimulators and drug dispensers usually contain heat sensitive electronics, IC chip sets or organic materials. Fiber lasers provide very small spot diameters. This results in very high power density required for seam welding applications in thicker metals. Fiber laser power is also scalable from low average power (10 watts) to 10 kilo-watts (kW) or more.

Laser Beam Access & Focal Length: While laser welding is a NON CONTACT process-beam access is required to get the focused laser spot over the weld zone. If any portion of the beam is blocked, the weld will be incomplete and unacceptable. Key factors to consider are focused spot diameter and focal length. Longer focal lengths produce a narrower beam cone angle, larger spot diameter and longer depth of field. Longer focal lengths offer a more acute beam angle making it more suitable for tight geometries. A shorter focal length results in a smaller spot diameter but limit the working depth of field. (Figure 3). Focal Length: 120mm 100mm 80mm 60mm
Fig. 3

Beam Access

Beam Access Blocked

As can be seen from the above Figure 3, the beam with the longer focal length will not be blocked and will reach the weld target through a small opening. On the other hand, the shorter focal length beam will be blocked by the component (or tooling) features and cannot deliver sufficient energy to complete the weld. Melting vs Vaporizing: The laser power and energy density must be sufficient to melt the metals and form a weld nugget to the desired depth of penetration. Too little power/energy density and the metal will not melt or the weld penetration will be insufficient to join the materials. Too much and the material may begin to vaporize and blowout. (See Figure 4)
Good Welds Weld blowout

0.025" depth 304L Stainless

Fig. 4.

The welds shown in the green area contain sufficient power and energy density to produce good welds with no evidence of weld splatter. Power/energy density was maintained below the vaporization point.

Beam Profile & Power Density: One factor to consider when calculating power density/energy density is the beam profile. A top hat beam profile, for example, is more forgiving since the power and energy is evenly distributed across the weld zone. Top hat energy distribution is achieved when the laser beam is delivered to the work piece via a fiber optic cable. Increasing the pulse energy increases the weld depth. Vaporization does not occur if the power/energy density remains below the vaporization point. However, excessive power/energy density is possible even with a top hat beam profile if the peak power reaches the vaporization point. (See Figures 5 & 6) Melting Point

Fig. 5 Top Hat Welds

Fig. 6. Cross Section -Top Hat

When fixed optics are employed to deliver the laser beam to the work piece, the margin of error and point of focus are much more critical to maintain. The beam profile from fixed optics beam delivery system is more Gaussian in profile. Controlling peak power is more difficult because the center of the beam may produce vaporization temperatures while the outer portion of the beam only melts the metal. Weld splatter and metal vaporization is more likely to occur using fixed optics. (See Figures 6 & 7).

Vaporization Point Melting Point

Fig. 6 Gaussian Profile

Fig. 7 Blowout

Metallurgical Considerations: Some metals cannot be laser welded due to their metallurgical composition. Brass, for example cannot be laser welded. Why? Brass is an alloy of copper and zinc. The problem with brass is that the melting temperature of the copper (1084C) exceeds the boiling (vaporization) point of the zinc (907C). Zinc melts at 419C. By the time the copper melts the zinc has vaporized. When the zinc vaporizes it explodes and splatters metal over a large area. The same is true with bronze and phosphor bronze. Summary: Laser welding is a mature material joining process. Laser engineers have a number of laser and beam delivery and process control options available to optimize the weld process for their particular application. However, because there are so many options, achieving reliable, production worthy results will require a good understanding of laser fundamentals, process controls, laser, beam delivery and material choices.