The use of carbon-filled black acrylic (CFBA) as a quantitative and qualitative analytical tool for fiber laser cutting is investigated. In the qualitative work, CFBA targets placed below the laser cutting zone when cutting stainless steel showed a distinctive “leaf” shaped evaporation crater which can provide information about the nature of the reflections taking place in the cut zone. Quantitative measurements have revealed a specific evaporation energy of 3.4 J/mm3 for CFBA. However, this figure is only applicable when considering intense beams when the CFBA target is stationary with respect to the laser beam.

Topics
Thermal conductivity, Thermodynamic properties, Laser materials, Optical microscopy, Polymers, Laser resonators, Laser cutting, Threshold energy, Chemical elements, Scattering
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