Traditional MIG and TIG welding drawbacks include typically requiring timely initial setup and imparting significant heat while welding resulting in large heat-affected zones with material distortion and deformation resulting in both lower quality results and the need for pre- and post- welding operations that increase overall costs and lower productivity. Further adding to costs is the need to employ experienced welders for welding both complex and simple joints. Automated laser welding resolved these problems but until now, it was not a reasonable solution for metal fabricators due to high costs, required floor space and complexity. IPG Photonics solved these challenges with the introduction of a revolutionary new product that brings manual handheld laser welding and cleaning capabilities to fabricators of any scale for use by both novice and professional welders. The adjustable 1.5 kW fiber laser source with available 2.5 kW peak power delivers the processing power required for welding via an ergonomic handheld gun. Process parameters are stored in the device and optimized for common material-thickness combinations, as well as providing the capability for welding dissimilar materials and those with differing electrical conductivity. Incorporation of beam oscillation (wobbling) both increases the weld seam width up to 5 mm for parts with poor fit-up and creates aesthetic seams as desired. Compact and portable at 0.1 m3 and 53 kg makes this solution both a revolutionary laser innovation and a highly productive industrial tool.
The kW-level single-mode Yb fiber lasers at wavelengths in 1000 -1030nm spectral range with diffraction-limited beam and with direct diode pumping are remarkable high brightness and low quantum defect sources for tandem pumping of multi-kilowatt fiber and crystal laser systems. In this paper we present SM Yb fiber lasers in all-fiber format with powers 0.75kW, 0.90kW, 1.33kW and 1.40kW at 1007nm, 1010nm, 1018nm and 1030nm respectively with M2 values of output beams < 1.1. These are the highest powers of single mode CW Yb fiber lasers at wavelengths near 1 micron to the best of our knowledge. The fiber oscillators with direct diode pumping are highly efficient and have optical slope efficiencies from 64% at 1007nm to 78% at 1018nm relative to total laser diode pump power. The fiber lasers have 3-5m output delivery cable terminated with a LC-8 connector in dependence on power level and MFD of output fiber. The pump and non-linear process (SRS and MI) limitations are discussed.
We report an industrial grade picosecond and femtosecond pulse Yb fiber lasers with >100 μJ pulse energy and hundreds of Watts of average power for improved laser machining speed of sapphire and glass. This highly efficient laser offers >25% wall plug efficiency within a compact 3U rack-mountable configuration plus a long >2m fiber delivery cable. Reconfigurable features such as controllable repetition rate, fine pulse duration control, burst mode operation and adjustable pulse energy permit the customer to tailor the laser to their application.
100W linear-polarized single-mode CW emission is demonstrated in an all-fiber format at 1566 nm. The Yb3+/Er3+ doped fiber laser has an extinction ratio >20 dB and M2<1.1. Using an Yb-Er doped multi-mode fiber, the laser provides > 13% overall electrical efficiency and less than 4 nm linewidth without the onset of Yb ions generation at wavelength range of 1060-1080 nm. There are no saturation effects due to pump or nonlinear phenomena. Parasitic lasing is suppressed with fiber laser cavity design and specialty filters.
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