A Comparative Analysis of Laser-Cut Surfaces Obtained with Two Different Lasers
J. Grum and D. Zuljan
This paper gives a comparison between two types of laser in terms of the amplitude spectra of the surface-roughness profile, the macrographs of the laser cut, the streak width, and the surface roughness with two types of laser. The paper compares the quality of the laser- cut surfaces cut quality obtained using a Spectra Physics laser and a locally home-made Iskra Fotona laser. The processes at the cutting front were monitored by measuring the profiles of the laser-cut surfaces with a roughness gauge and by measuring the surface unevenness on macrographs obtained with an optical microscope. The analysis confirmed that the data on the cut surface obtained from the macrographs, measured using optical and electronic microscopes, and the data on surface roughness, including the calculated amplitude spectra of the profile, show that both can effectively describe well the laser-cut surface formed, and appropriately to assess well the processes occurring at the cutting front.