The invention relates to a method 100 and an apparatus 300 for cutting or ablating a particular material of the workpiece with a pulsed laser beam coupled into a fluid jet. The method comprises producing the pulsed laser beam with at least one laser source, providing the pressurized fluid jet onto the workpiece, and coupling the pulsed laser beam into the fluid jet towards the workpiece. The pulsed laser beam comprises at least two superimposed pulsations selected based on the particular material of the workpiece. A first pulsation has a different power and frequency than a second pulsation.

A laser beam irradiating apparatus includes a laser oscillator configured to emit a laser beam, a first polarization beam splitter configured to separate the laser beam into a first laser beam of s-polarized light and a second laser beam of p-polarized light, a first spatial light modulator configured to modulate the first laser beam according to a phase pattern, and emit the resulting first laser beam, a second spatial light modulator configured to modulate the second laser beam according to a phase pattern, and emit the resulting second laser beam; a second polarization beam splitter configured to synthesize the first laser beam emitted from the first spatial light modulator and the second laser beam emitted from the second spatial light modulator, and an imaging unit configured to image the synthesized laser beam, and irradiate a target object with the resulting laser beam.

A laser irradiation apparatus including: a laser light source configured to emit a linearly polarized pulsed laser light; a first half-wave plate rotatably provided in an optical path of the pulsed laser light; a first polarization beam splitter configured to branch the pulsed laser light from the first half-wave plate into a first pulsed light and a second pulsed light; a second polarization beam splitter configured to combined the first pulsed light with the second pulsed light, the second pulsed light, the second pulsed light being delayed from the first pulsed light by using an optical path length difference between the first pulsed light and the second pulsed light; and a first wave plate rotatably provided in an optical path of a combined pulsed light generated by combining the first pulsed light with the second pulsed light at the second polarization beam splitter.

In various embodiments, emitter modules include a laser source and (a) a refractive optic, (b) an output coupler, or (c) both a refractive optic and an output coupler. Either or both of these may be situated on mounts that facilitate two-axis rotation. The mount may be, for example, a conventional, rotatively adjustable “tip/tilt” mount or gimbal arrangement. In the case of the refractive optic, either the optic itself or the beam path may be adjusted; that is, the optic may be on a tip/tilt mount or the optic may be replaced with two or more mirrors each on tip/tilt mount.

A method for laser keyhole welding is disclosed to weld two pieces together made of a metal alloy. The method independently adjusts power in a focused center beam and power in a concentric focused annular beam. At the termination of a weld, the power of the annular beam is reduced, motion of the focused beams is stopped, the power of the center beam is increased, and the power of both beams is initially ramped down rapidly and then ramped down slowly. Increasing the power of the center beam equalizes the temperature of both pieces prior to solidification and cooling at the termination of the weld. An additional pulse of power may be applied to prevent the formation of defects or to erase any defects.

Described are a method and a control data generation device (54, 54′) for use therein for generating control data (PSD) for a device (1) for the additive manufacture of a manufacturing product (2) in a manufacturing process, in which build-up material (13) is built up and selectively solidified, wherein, for the solidification process, the build-up material (13) is irradiated with at least one energy beam (AL) on a build field (8), and an area of incidence (AF) of the energy beam (AL) on the build field (8) is moved in order to melt the build-up material (13). The control data (PSD) are generated such that the energy beam (AL) has an intensity distribution (GIV), at the area of incidence (AF) on the build field (8), in a section plane (x, y) running perpendicularly to the beam axis (SA) of the energy beam (AL), which intensity distribution has at least one local minimum (MIZ) in a middle region along at least one secant of the intensity distribution (GIV) in the section plane (x, y) and has an intensity profile curve (IPK), running along the edge (R) of the intensity distribution (GIV), which intensity profile curve has, at least at one point, a maximum value (MAX), and, at least at one point in a region opposite the maximum value (MAX) on the intensity profile curve (IPK), a minimum value (MIN).

Also described are a method and a control device (50) for controlling a device (1) for the additive manufacture of a manufacturing product (2) using this control data (PSD), and a device (1) for the additive manufacture of manufacturing products.

In various embodiments, a workpiece is processed utilizing primary and secondary laser beams having different wavelengths and which are coupled into specialized optical fibers. The primary and secondary beams may be utilized during different stages of workpiece processing.

A high power, dual wavelength laser source is formed of a plurality of conventional IR laser diodes disposed in an aligned configuration such that the output beams from the plurality of laser diodes may be simultaneously passed through a bulk optic frequency multiplying device (e.g., a second-harmonic or third-harmonic generating crystal). The combination of the individual laser diodes creates a high power input beam, where the power level itself is determined by the number of individual devices (or bars) used at the input. The frequency multiplying device creates a known harmonic of the input beam, providing as an output two beams, one operating at the original wavelength (denoted λ) and another operating at a fraction of that original wavelength.

Laser beam welding a workpiece includes: generating first and second beam areas on the workpiece by first and second laser beams, respectively. The beam areas are guided in a feed direction relative to the workpiece. Centroids of the beam areas are not coinciding. The first beam area runs ahead of the second beam area. A length of the first beam area, measured transversely to the feed direction, is greater than or equal to that of the second. A surface area of the first beam area is greater than that of the second. A width of the first beam area, measured in the feed direction, is greater than or equal to that of the second. A laser power of the first laser beam is greater than that of the second. The second laser beam is irradiated into a weld pool generated by the first laser beam.

A system and method forms protruding features on a surface of a substrate through the use of multiple laser beams. The protruding features collectively define an array that results in a non-slip feature or non-slip element/texture on the substrate for installation in slippery environments for safe passage and traversing by persons thereabove. The plurality or multiple laser beams are carried by a moveable platform coupled with a CNC machine having instructions or logic that is programmed to form the protruding features at precise locations on the substrate. The multiple laser beams are angled relative to a center axis, typically more than 10 degrees relative to vertical. When three lasers are used, each laser beam is directed to a sector around a beam impingement point where powder material has been deposited to be liquefied by the beams. The beams are in respective sectors relative to the beam impingement point.