Materials
Most popular materials requiring laser processing are:
- Plastics, polymers
- Metals, including special alloys and refractory metals
- Ceramics, glass
- Gem stones, minerals, diamond (including CVD films)
Whenever traditional technology fails, laser-assisted photomachining offers a cost effective and reliable solution. PhotoMachining demonstrates a few real life examples of laser processed parts below on this page.
Plastics and Polymers
Vias and orifices are easily made in thin walls of plastic parts. Circular vias, squares, ovals or other complicated shapes can be made. Thin plastic films as well as parts several mm in thickness can be laser drilled. Films such as Kapton and Mylar are pretty common materials to be laser machined. If you like, you can view some sample pictures of cuts in mylar and kapton.
Orifices in injection molded parts can be drilled at high speed and with very high precision. Arrays of hundreds and thousands of small precisely positioned vias can be made on catheters and other medical devices.
Pattern cutting of thin plastic films is also possible thanks to the PhotoMachining vacuum chuck used to hold the film flat under the beam.
(All photos shown below are from PhotoMachining Quality Control Division archives and represent the actual parts processed at PhotoMachining laser facilities.)