H. Becker
S. Czerner
A. Ostendorf
P. Stippler
P. Matteazzi

Technology improvements for micro scale laser sintering

SPIE Opto-Ireland
4.-6. April
Dublin
2005
Type: Konferenzbeitrag
Abstract
The steadily rising world market volume in the micro system technology area has made higher and higher claims on the micro production technologies so that there is still a shortage in the production of metallic components with total dimensions of only few millimeters and the smallest structures are in the few micrometer range. Currently, the methods of the rapid prototyping area are approved and in relation to the product development one of the most essential instrument of the component manufacturing, in which particularly the macroscopic 3D laser beam processing has proved its high potential with regard to flexible manufacturing of metallic components. New developments in the beam sources area open possibilities of using this method also for the production of micro components. Hence, the subject of the present work is the development of a suitable system concept for 3D micro cladding and/or sintering. This concept has been qualified by theoretical considerations as well as experimental investigations. The developed, fully automatically manageable facility contains a Yb:YAG disc laser of a laser beam focus diameter to be set below 10 μm. As for quality assurance, a pyrometric temperature regulation has been integrated into the facility, which controls the temperatures in the welding bath with the help of a focusable measuring spot down to 50 μm. The process takes place in a likewise controlled protection gas chamber in which atmospheres with an oxygen content below 100 ppm can be guaranteed. The aerodynamic micro particle delivery will be possible with the help of developed combination procedures. The focusing in the melting pool occurs through a coaxial nozzle. Experimental investigations confirm the high potential of this method through which sintered layers smaller than 15 μm can be generated. Samples will be shown.