Have you ever wondered how small 1–500 µm is? To give you a better idea, the average width of a single human hair ranges from 10–200 µm. That’s a VERY small diameter. Now imagine a laser process technology that can make tiny features that width. This process is known as micromachining, an advanced technology that … Continue reading
HiLASE Centre scientists have broken the world record in the speed production of laser-induced periodic nanostructures on a stainless steel surface. The HiLASE Centre is a part of the Institute of Physics of the CAS. The Laser Micromachining team led by Peter Hauschwitz, applied a concept of multi-beam processing of record speed of 1909 cm2/min … Continue reading
Femtosecond lasers are highly versatile tools that enable unique material processing capabilities. Due to the high precision offered by ultrashort pulse micromachining, femtosecond laser systems are applied in both industrial and scientific fields. To accompany the needs of the industry, a trend towards high average power (>100 W) femtosecond laser systems for micromachining has recently become apparent. … Continue reading
Background: What is a diffractive beam splitter? Diffractive beam splitters, or multi-spot elements, are a family of diffractive optical elements (DOEs) that split an incoming laser beam into an array of beams with controlled separation angles. This splitting can be along a line (1-D splitters) or into a matrix (2-D splitter), including square, hexagonal or rectangular array … Continue reading
What is a top hat beam? A top hat laser beam has an intensity profile that is flat and uniform, with sharp edges where the energy drops rapidly to zero. The top hat beam shape can be a square, rectangle, line, circle or any other shape. There are generally two types of top hat laser … Continue reading
The high absorption of infrared light in silica is an established trait that has seen longwave infrared lasers operating at 10.6 µm and 9.3 µm, implemented for a variety of applications over the years. In this article, we will look at three such use cases: laser damage growth mitigation, manufacturing of freeform micro-optics, and fiber … Continue reading