Laser Marking

Laser marking offers several advantages over methods like dot peen and chemical etching. It features:

• Traceability and serialization – especially important in medical device and automotive electronics manufacturing
• Fast, clean processing
• Non-contact process that doesn’t damage parts or use consumables
• Improved environmental profile compared to wet/chemical marking methods
• Easy and flexible automation
• Low overall cost of ownership in high-volume production environments

These benefits make laser marking attractive, especially in industries where traceability, speed, and mark quality are critical.

How Does Laser Marking Work?

Laser markers produce a focused beam of light with high energy density that interacts with the surface of a material. Depending on set laser parameters like energy density, wavelength, and pulse duration this energy can create:

• Thermal effects, changing material color or texture
• Ablation/material removal in high energy conditions
• Annealing or oxidation that leaves high-contrast marks (Laserax)

Mark types, including alphanumeric characters, bar codes, 2D matrix codes, logos, and graphics are all possible.

Types of Marks

Laser marking can take on many forms – some applications specify highly visible, attractive marks, while others need marks on obscure places or small enough to be visible only using magnification including:

• Engraving — removal of material for deep, permanent marks
• Etching — shallow surface modification
• Annealing — heat-induced color change without material removal
• Foaming and bleaching — for certain plastics and polymers

The types of marks that can be made are dependent on the characteristics of the laser markers used to make the marks. The energy density, wavelength, and material properties determine the type of interaction with the material. High energy density and short wavelengths will typically yield ablative/material removal effects, while lower power density and longer wavelengths will typically yield thermal effects.

What Materials Can Be Laser Marked?

Lasers can mark a wide variety of materials, including:

• Metals
• Semiconductors
• Plastics
• Ceramics
• Composite materials

Mark quality and appearance depend on material properties and the laser parameters chosen.

What Kinds of Marks Can Be Made?

Laser markers can produce many types of identification marks, such as:

• Alphanumeric characters
• Barcodes and 2D matrix codes
• Serial numbers and logos
• Graphics and custom part information

This makes them ideal for part traceability, serialization, and branding applications.

What Does AMADA WELD TECH Offer in Laser Marking?

AMADA WELD TECH provides pulsed fiber laser markers (10 – 70 W) and picosecond lasers (50 W) including:

• Standard and benchtop CDRH Class 1 workstations
• Custom engineered system solutions
• Tooling, vision, motion, and optics