A six sigma laser processing system is proposed that utilizes real time measurement of ISO 11146 and ISO 13694 laser beam parameters without disrupting the process beam and with minimal loss. If key laser beam parameters can be measured during a laser process, without a disruption to the process, then a higher level of process control can be realized. The difficulty in achieving this concept to date is that most accepted beam measurement techniques are time averaged and require interruption of the laser beam and therefore have made it impractical for real time measurement which is necessary to consider six sigma process control. Utilizing an all passive optical technique to measure a laser’s beam waist and other parameters for both focused and unfocused beams, the direct measurement of the ISO laser beam parameters are realized without disruption to the process and with minimal loss. The technique is simple enough to be applied to low and high power systems well into the multi-kilowatt range. Through careful monitoring of all laser beam parameters via software control of upper and lower limits for these parameters, tighter quality control is possible for achieving a six sigma process. In this paper we describe the optical design for both low and high power laser systems and how six sigma laser processing may be realized.

Date Published: 4 March 2014
PDF: 11 pages
Proc. SPIE 8960, Laser Resonators, Microresonators, and Beam Control XVI, 89600V (4 March 2014); doi: 10.1117/12.2037013

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 8960:
Laser Resonators, Microresonators, and Beam Control XVI
Alexis V. Kudryashov; Alan H. Paxton; Vladimir S. Ilchenko; Lutz Aschke; Kunihiko Washio, Editor(s)