Webster PJL, Wright LG, Ji Y, Galbraith CM, Kinross AW, Van Vlack C, Fraser JM. Automatic laser welding and milling with in situ inline coherent imaging.
OPTICS LETTERS 2014;
39:6217-6220. [PMID:
25361318 DOI:
10.1364/ol.39.006217]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
Although new affordable high-power laser technologies enable many processing applications in science and industry, depth control remains a serious technical challenge. In this Letter we show that inline coherent imaging (ICI), with line rates up to 312 kHz and microsecond-duration capture times, is capable of directly measuring laser penetration depth, in a process as violent as kW-class keyhole welding. We exploit ICI's high speed, high dynamic range, and robustness to interference from other optical sources to achieve automatic, adaptive control of laser welding, as well as ablation, achieving 3D micron-scale sculpting in vastly different heterogeneous biological materials.
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