Processing of Dielectric Materials and Metals with ps Laserpulses

Since industrial suited ps laser systems are available, the cold ablation with ultrashort laser pulses is of huge interest when high requirements concerning accuracy, surface roughness and heat affected zone are demanded. Interesting applications lie within the fields of surface and 3-d structuring of metals, semiconductors (especially flexible solar cells) and dielectric materials with direct and induced processes.
For a profitable industrial use of this technology high process efficiency is required which is confirmed by the development of the corresponding systems towards high average powers up to several 10 W. Beside the pulse duration, which is given by the laser system, the user has a wide variety of parameters, e.g. fluence, repetition rate, wavelength and marking speed, to optimize structuring processes. For a given average power there exist optimal laser parameters to achieve a maximal volume ablation rate. To take benefit of this maximum ablation rate, to simultaneously prevent harmful effects (particle shielding, surface melting) and to achieve the requirements concerning surface quality and accuracy, adapted structuring strategies have to be used. This can lead to equipment needs of the beam guiding system which are often not accomplishable and therefore to the demand for new technologies which have to be developed.