Sub-surface glass marking for the pharmaceutical industry

Ultrashort pulse lasers, including Luxinar’s LXR^® series, can mark in the bulk of optically transparent materials for applications including syringe and vial marking; sub-surface codes are indelible and not subject to wear or damage. Marks are made using closely spaced dots to form characters less than half a millimetre high, barely visible to the naked eye.

Glass cutting for the automotive industry

Ultrashort pulse and CO₂ lasers can be used in combination for thick glass cutting.  An ultrashort pulse laser scribes the glass, a process that needs high energy and which may be delivered as a single pulse or as a fast, high-energy burst.  A CO₂ laser is then used to supply thermal energy to initiate cleaving along the scribed line.  The glass is separated cleanly with little or no damage due to microcracking at the edge, and curves, straight lines and closed contours can be produced.

Scribing metal foils

The constant drive towards miniaturisation in RFID and mobile device antennas calls for narrow lines to be scribed close together whilst maintaining electrical isolation from one another.

To ensure that the metal is removed cleanly from the substrate, ultrashort pulse laser scribing selectively removes the conductive metal layer from a carrier or substrate material with no damage to the surrounding area. 

Cutting and drilling carbon fibre composites

Machining of carbon fibre composites for the automotive and aerospace industries evaporates the epoxy resin which binds the composite together and can result in de-lamination and matrix damage, tool wear and breakage. Conventional laser processing creates a heat-affected zone around the cut, leaving the fibres exposed and compromising the strength of the material.

Cutting with an ultrashort pulse laser greatly reduces heat diffusion, leaving the epoxy resin intact; holes can be drilled and features cut out without compromising the strength of the carbon fibre sheet.