Effects of mode structure on three-dimensional laser heating due to single or multiple rectangular laser beams

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Abstract
The natural shape of a typical chemical oxygen‐iodine laser (COIL) beam is rectangular which means that the transverse cross section of the beam is rectangular. Such a rectangular beam can be split into two or more beams to carry out materials processing. The distance between such beams and the mode structure in the beams can affect the distribution of heat in the workpiece. This, in turn, affects the quality and efficiency of materials processing. A three‐dimensional quasi‐steady‐state thermal model is presented in this article, and an expression for the temperature distribution during laser heating with single or multiple COIL beams having rectangular spots is obtained. Calculations are carried out for single or two rectangular COIL beams. The depth of heating is found to increase when the distance between two beams is less than a certain value.