Woodhead Publishing Advances in Laser Materials Processing Technology: Technology, Research and Application (Woodhead Publishing in Materials) (Woodhead Publishing Series in Welding and Other Joining Technologies)

This comprehensively relays the state-of-the-art in laser materials processing technology and applications. Starting with laser cutting and machining, the book discusses laser welding, annealing and hardening. It then considers surface treatment, coating and materials deposition as well as other engineering techniques such as peening and net-shape engineering, before discussing laser micro and nano-fabrication techniques. The book concludes by examining modelling and process control. Key Features: a comprehensive practitioner guide and reference work explaining state-of-the-art laser processing technologies in manufacturing and other disciplines; explores the challenges, potential and future directions through the continuous development of new, application-specific lasers in materials processing; discusses coatings and material deposition with lasers with including the production of coatings by laser-assisted processes, laser direct metal deposition and laser induced forward transfer (LIFT). Contents: Part 1 Overview and challenges for the future: Light industry: an introduction to laser processing and its industrial applications; The challenges ahead for laser macro, micro, and nano manufacturing. Part 2 Laser cutting and machining: Laser fusion cutting of difficult materials; Laser-assisted glass cleaving; Laser dicing of silicon and electronics substrates; Laser machining of carbon fibre-reinforced plastic composites. Part 3 Laser welding: Understanding and improving process control in pulsed and continuous wave laser welding; Physical mechanisms controlling keyhole and melt pool dynamics during laser welding; Laser microspot welding in electronics production; Enhancing laser welding capabilities by hybridization or combination with other processes. Part 4 Laser annealing and hardening: Laser transformation hardening of steel; Pulsed laser annealing technology for nanoscale fabrication of silicon-based devices in semiconductors. Part 5 Surface treatment, coating and materials deposition using lasers: The laser induced forward transfer (LIFT) technique for micro-printing; Production of biomaterial coatings by laser-assisted processes; Thick metallic coatings by coaxial and side laser cladding: processing and properties. Part 6 Laser rapid manufacturing and net-shape engineering: Laser direct metal deposition: theory and applications in manufacturing and maintenance; Laser consolidation: a rapid manufacturing process for making net-shape functional components; Advances in laser-induced plastic deformation processes. Part 7 Laser micro- and nano-fabrication: Laser ablation; Laser micro/nano-fabrication techniques and their applications in electronics; Laser processing of direct-write nano-sized materials; Micro- and nano-parts generated by laser-based solid freeform fabrication; Laser-assisted additive fabrication of micro-sized coatings. Part 8 Mathematical modelling and control of laser processes: Multiphysics modelling laser solid freeform fabrication techniques; Process control of laser materials processing.