A method of preparing aluminum metal pieces for welding, along with welded sheet metal assemblies formed from the prepared aluminum metal pieces. In one embodiment, a scanning beam of a laser is directed at an edge portion of the sheet metal piece such that a portion of the scanning beam is configured to impact an oxide layer at the edge portion. The laser is pulsed in a series of ablating pulses at the edge portion, with the ablating pulses creating an ablation plume that includes ablated material from the oxide layer of the primary surface and the peripheral surface of the edge portion. The ablation plume is analyzed, and ablation and analyzing continues until a threshold of at least one constituent in the ablation plume or the analysis plume is met or exceeded. One or more operating parameters of the laser are adjusted based on the analysis of the ablation plume or analysis plume. In some embodiments, two aluminum metal pieces are simultaneously prepared.

A spot welded member includes a spot weld formed by holding a sheet stack of multiple steel sheets between a pair of electrodes and spot-welding the sheet stack, in which at least one of the multiple steel sheets is a high-strength zinc-based coated steel sheet having a tensile strength of 780 MPa or more, the high-strength zinc-based coated steel sheet having a coating with an Al content of 0.5% or more by mass, and in which the heat shock region of the spot weld outwardly extending from an edge of a corona bond area includes a coated layer including an FeAl alloy layer having an average thickness of 0.3 μm or more and a zinc-based coated layer having an average thickness of 2.0 μm or more on the FeAl alloy layer at the interface between the base steel sheet of the high-strength zinc-based coated steel sheet and the coating.

A method for creating a bonded zinc-coated structure is provided. In another aspect, a sheet metal joining system includes a heated roller contacting a sheet metal workpiece to braze together zinc-based coatings. A further aspect employs a zinc coated metal sandwich including a core having peaks and valleys.

Provided is a laser processing method including overlapping a plurality of plate-shaped members that include a first plate-shaped member disposed on one end side of an overlapping direction and a second plate-shaped member disposed on the other end side of the overlapping direction; branching a laser beam into a first branched laser beam and a second branched laser beam; irradiating the first plate-shaped member with the first branched laser beam and the second branched laser beam in a state where the first branched laser beam and the second branched laser beam are emitted in parallel; forming line-shaped melting portions on the first plate-shaped member by moving the branched laser beams in a direction intersecting a direction in which the branched laser beams are aligned; and joining overlapped plate-shaped members in a state where the melting portion formed by using the first branched laser beam and the melting portion formed by using the second branched laser beam are connected to each other in the second plate-shaped member and the melting portions do not penetrate the second plate-shaped member.

The present disclosure provides a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device. Furthermore the present disclosure provides a photovoltaic device and a light emitting diode manufactured in accordance with the method. The method comprises the steps of forming a germanium layer using deposition techniques compatible with high-volume, low-cost manufacturing, such as magnetron sputtering, and exposing the germanium layer to laser light to reduce the amount of defects in the germanium layer. After the method is performed the germanium layer can be used as a virtual germanium substrate for the growth of III-V materials.

The thermal processing device includes a stage, a continuous wave electromagnetic radiation source, a series of lenses, a translation mechanism, a detection module, a three-dimensional auto-focus, and a computer system. The stage is configured to receive a substrate thereon. The continuous wave electromagnetic radiation source is disposed adjacent the stage, and is configured to emit continuous wave electromagnetic radiation along a path towards the substrate. The series of lenses is disposed between the continuous wave electromagnetic radiation source and the stage, and are configured to condense the continuous wave electromagnetic radiation into a line of continuous wave electromagnetic radiation on a surface of the substrate. The translation mechanism is configured to translate the stage and the line of continuous wave electromagnetic radiation relative to one another. The detection module is positioned within the path, and is configured to detect continuous wave electromagnetic radiation.

A method for laser welding first and second components is provided including moving a laser beam across a portion of a surface of the first component at a speed sufficient to generate protuberances on the surface of the first component by means of a humping effect, juxtaposing said first and second components such that opposed surfaces of the first and second components are separated by said protuberances on the surface of the first component, and laser welding said first and second components by scanning the laser beam in a region in which said surfaces are separated by said protuberances. The height of the protuberances can be controlled by controlling a scanning speed of the laser beam.

A boroscope includes a working head having first and second ends. A first optical fiber extends through the boroscope to a position between the first and second ends. A second optical fiber extends through the boroscope to the second end of the working head. A laser optical fiber extends through the boroscope. At least one lens is arranged between the first end and the second end of the working head and a mirror is gimballed to the second end of the working head. The laser optical fiber directs laser light transmitted through the laser optical fiber onto the lens and then onto the mirror. A first LED is arranged at a position between the first end and the second end of the working head and a second LED is arranged at the second end of the working head and an actuator devices adjust the position of the mirror.

A welded steel part with a very high mechanical strength is provided. The welded steel part is obtained by heating followed by hot forming, then cooling of at least one welded blank obtained by butt welding of at least one first and one second sheet. The at least one first and second sheets including, at least in part, a steel substrate and a pre-coating which includes an intermetallic alloy layer in contact with the steel substrate, topped by a metal alloy layer of aluminum or aluminum-based alloy. A method for the fabrication of a welded steel part and the fabrication of structural or safety parts for automotive vehicles are also provided.

Method for joining a first and a second steel blanks, at least one of the blanks comprising aluminium. The method comprises providing a support being made of a magnetic material for each blank, the supports being arranged distanced apart by a central space; providing a coil winding around one support, arranging the first blank on one support and the second blank on the other support, such that a butt end of the first blank that is facing the second blank is brought into contact with a butt end of the second blank that is facing the first blank defining a contacting area that closes a path for magnetic flux. The method further comprises applying a laser beam onto the contacting area, while applying an alternating current to the coil winding, wherein an alternating magnetic field is created across the contacting area in a direction substantially in-line with the blanks.