This guide outlines recent advances in the various methods of laser technology and appropriate manufacturing applications. Each process has unique requirements and matching the laser source to the project is essential for developing a robust solution.

New designs of precision cutters are optimizing sample preparation for greater efficiency, consistency, and precision. This article describes how three main factors impact the sample cutting process: blade speed, blade composition, and control of heat and cutting load.

Because electron backscatter diffraction is a surface-sensitive technique, preparing the sample surface so that it is smooth and free of defects is crucial to successful analysis. Supplementing hand polishing with ion milling provides a superior surface finish free of operator or technique-related errors, thus enabling a high-confidence EBSD examination of the microstructure of even the most complex materials.

Ultra-short femtosecond laser technology offers sub-400 fs pulses, high beam quality, and peak power that enables a high quality, cold ablation cutting process rather than a melt ejection process. Resulting cuts require minimal post processing and the small beam size allows machining of very fine details. The edge quality possible with a femtosecond laser for both metals and plastics makes it useful for machining heart, brain, and eye stents (both nitinol and cobalt-chrome), catheters, heart valves, and polymer tubing.

This article discusses the capabilities of fusion or gas-assist fiber laser cutting technology for producing complex shapes from stainless steel, aluminum, nickel, titanium, and other metals ranging in thickness from 0.002 to 0.06 in.