Laser shock micro-forming is a non-thermal laser forming method that use laser-induced shockwave to modify surface properties and to adjust shapes and geometry of work pieces. In this paper, we present an adaptive optical technique to engineer spatial profiles of the laser beam to exert precision control on the laser shock forming process for free-standing MEMS structures. Using a spatial light modulator, on-target laser energy profiles are engineered to control shape, size, and deformation magnitude, which has led to significant improvement of the laser shock processing outcome at micrometer scales. The results presented in this paper show that the adaptive-optics laser beam forming is an effective method to improve both quality and throughput of the laser forming process at micrometer scales.

Date Published: 22 July 2016
PDF: 6 pages
Proc. SPIE 9983, Pacific Rim Laser Damage 2016: Optical Materials for High-Power Lasers, 99830U (22 July 2016); doi: 10.1117/12.2241123

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 9983:
Pacific Rim Laser Damage 2016: Optical Materials for High-Power Lasers
Takahisa Jitsuno; Jianda Shao; Wolfgang Rudolph, Editor(s)