Precision drilling of metals and ceramics with short and ultrashort pulsed solid state lasers

摘要

At the end of 1999 a German National Project called PRIMUS was established, the most important aim of which is to analyze the potential advantages of ultrashort pulses in combination with different drilling strategies and to obtain a better understanding of the ablation and drilling processes. This contribution will present the first results of this project. The advantages of short and ultrashort pulses in view of quality and efficiency will be discussed. It will be shown, that the use of suitable drilling technologies, such as e.g. helical drilling, and a specifically designed trepanning optic can significantly increase the quality of holes as well as expand the possible range of applications.