Laser bonding
Encyclopedia
Laser bonding is a marking technique that uses laser
Laser
A laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of photons. The term "laser" originated as an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation...

s and other forms of radiant energy to bond an additive marking substance to a wide range of substrates.

Invented in 1997, this patent protected technology delivers permanent marks on metals, glass and ceramic parts for a diverse range of industrial and manual applications, ranging from aerospace to the awards & engraving industries. It differs from the more widely known techniques of laser engraving
Laser engraving
Laser engraving, or laser marking, is the practice of using lasers to engrave or mark an object. The technique does not involve the use of inks, nor does it involve tool bits which contact the engraving surface and wear out...

 and laser ablation
Laser ablation
Laser ablation is the process of removing material from a solid surface by irradiating it with a laser beam. At low laser flux, the material is heated by the absorbed laser energy and evaporates or sublimates. At high laser flux, the material is typically converted to a plasma...

 in that it is an additive process, adding material to the substrate to form the marking instead of removing it as in those techniques.

For metals, parts can be permanently marked with high contrast, high resolution marks for logos, bar-coding, identification and serialization purposes, without damage to the substrate. With glass and ceramics, complex surfaces can be decorated or marked and the traditional firing process replaced by a laser, with its permanent bond fired on in seconds.

Laser bonding has been achieved by Nd:YAG, CO2 laser
Carbon dioxide laser
The carbon dioxide laser was one of the earliest gas lasers to be developed , and is still one of the most useful. Carbon dioxide lasers are the highest-power continuous wave lasers that are currently available...

, Fiber laser
Fiber laser
A fiber laser or fibre laser is a laser in which the active gain medium is an optical fiber doped with rare-earth elements such as erbium, ytterbium, neodymium, dysprosium, praseodymium, and thulium. They are related to doped fiber amplifiers, which provide light amplification without lasing...

 and Diode-pumped solid-state laser and can be made by other forms of radiant energy.

Laser bonding is often referred to as "CerMark', "CerMarked", or "CerMarking". "CerMark" is a registered trademark of the Ferro Corporation
Ferro Corporation
Ferro Corporation , is a leading global producer of technology-based performance materials for manufacturers and is headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio. In 2007, the company was listed as 844 on the Fortune 1000....

, Cleveland Ohio, USA. This trademark, like Xerox, has become synonymous with the laser bonding process.

The laser bonding process

Mark quality depends on a variety of factors, including the substrate used, marking speed, laser spot size, beam overlap, materials thickness, and laser parameters. Materials may be applied by various methods, including a brush on technique, spraying, pad printing, screen printing, roll coating, tape, and others.

The marking process generally comprises three steps:

1. Application of the marking material

2. Bonding of the marking material with a laser.

3. Removal of excess, unbonded material.

The resulting marking is fused to the substrate, and in most cases it is as durable as the subsrate itself.

The durability of laser bonded markings

Markings placed on stainless steel are extremely durable and have survived such testing as abrasion resistance, chemical resistance, outdoor exposure, extreme heat, extreme cold, acids, bases and various organic solvents.

Marks on glass have been tested for resistance to acids, bases and scratching.

NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...

's International Space Station
International Space Station
The International Space Station is a habitable, artificial satellite in low Earth orbit. The ISS follows the Salyut, Almaz, Cosmos, Skylab, and Mir space stations, as the 11th space station launched, not including the Genesis I and II prototypes...

, or ISS
ISS
The ISS is the International Space Station.ISS may also refer to:* I See Stars, an American electronic rock band* ISS A/S, a Danish service company* Idea Star Singer, a Malayalam music reality show by Asianet TV...

, was home to aluminum squares laser marked with CerMark marking material for almost four years. These squares were part of the Material International Space Station Experiment, or MISSE
Missé
Missé is a commune in the Deux-Sèvres department in western France.It is situated on the River Thouet some 5 km upstream from the town of Thouars, and is the site of a spectacular loop in the river.-References:*...

.

In this experiment test markings were applied to coupons made of materials commonly used in the construction of the external components used on space transportation vehicles, satellites and space stations. Markings applied using a wide range of different methods and techniques, including laser bonding. The material test coupons were then affixed to spaces provided on test panels, which were then installed onto trays which were attached to the ISS
ISS
The ISS is the International Space Station.ISS may also refer to:* I See Stars, an American electronic rock band* ISS A/S, a Danish service company* Idea Star Singer, a Malayalam music reality show by Asianet TV...

 during a space walk conducted during the STS-105
STS-105
STS-105 was a mission of the Space Shuttle Discovery to the International Space Station, launched from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, 10 August 2001. This mission was Discoverys final mission until STS-114, because Discovery was grounded for a refit, and then all Shuttles were grounded in the wake...

 Mission flown on August 10, 2001. The trays were positioned on the ISS
ISS
The ISS is the International Space Station.ISS may also refer to:* I See Stars, an American electronic rock band* ISS A/S, a Danish service company* Idea Star Singer, a Malayalam music reality show by Asianet TV...

 so that they to could expect to receive the maximum amount of impact damage and exposure to a high degree of atomic oxygen and UV radiation.

The experiment was recovered on July 30, 2005 during STS-114
STS-114
-Original crew:This mission was to carry the Expedition 7 crew to the ISS and bring home the Expedition 6 crew. The original crew was to be:-Mission highlights:...

 and returned to earth on August 9, 2005. The markings, DataMatrix two dimensional bar codes, were evaluated and found to be readable and visually looked as good as the day they were placed in orbit .

The laser bonding process is outlined and specified in both military and NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...

 marking specifications and standards. Laser bonding is also a preferred technique for use in the United States Department of Defense "Item Unique Identification" system (IUID
IUID
Item Unique IDentification is an asset identification system instituted by the United States Department of Defense to uniquely identify a discrete tangible item or asset and distinguish it from other like and/or unlike tangible items...

).
The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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