The effect of processing wavelength and fluence on the microdrilling of 316 L stainless steel with a diode pumped solid state laser

Diode pumped solid state lasers (DPSSs) with multiwavelength capability have become a powerful tool in laser material processing over the last few years. One application of high beam quality DPSS lasers that has received increased attention lately is the drilling of small diameter (<100 μm) holes through industrially important materials. Processing parameters play an important role and limit the precision of the process. A systematic series of experiments was performed to investigate the effect of the high fluence laser-drilling event in ambient air. From this study suitable processing regimes were established.