Excimer laser-A reliable tool for microprocessing and surface treatment

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Abstract
The short wavelength radiation (193‐351 nm) of excimer lasers makes them an excellent noncontact tool for processing metals, plastics and ceramics. The high photon energy and the very short duration of the excimer pulses can efficiently initiate photochemical and/or photothermal surface reactions leading to precision micromachining, indelible marking and microstructure modifications. This paper shows, that up to 200 W average power excimer laser systems exist, which can fulfill all requests to become a reliable tool for the industry. The aspect of MTBF and cost of ownership is the key aspect for the implementation of excimer lasers. The paper gives an outlook on recent progress concerning both the cost of ownership and the reliability of the excimer laser. A demonstration of the high precision achieved by photoablation using excimer lasers can be seen on the following picture. Without thermal destruction of surrounding material the word ‘‘Lambda Physik’’ was machined into a human hair.

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