Big Leap for Fiber Laser Welding

The new Coherent (Santa Clara, CA) HighLight FL4000CSM-ARM fiber laser builds on the Coherent HighLight ARM fiber laser series already qualified for automotive applications. It enables more advanced welding capabilities for high thermal conductivity metals, and aligns to welding requirements for e-mobility, energy storage and general electrical interconnects consisting of dissimilar materials, such as copper and aluminum, and foil stacks that require precise control.

Representing a significant improvement in simplicity, the technology overcomes the limitations of traditional joining technologies. HighLight FL4000CSM-ARM has a unique dual beam output (center beam surrounded by a ring beam) for welding thin conductive materials, which helps avert problems such as unstable welds due to welding head wear, as well as the large heat affected zone caused by ultrasonic or standard fiber laser welding.

The center beam has extremely high brightness (nominal BPP 0.6) allowing a smaller spot size compared to its multi-mode counterpart. The small spot size results in very high laser intensity that minimizes heating of the material, and, together with the pre-heating effect achieved by the ring beam, significantly improves stability of the melt pool – and therefore weld consistency.

Developed at the recently expanded “Center of Excellence for Fiber Lasers” in Tampere, Finland, the Coherent HighLight FL4000CSM-ARM is available with an output power of 4 kW (1.5 kW center beam, 2.5 kW ring beam). As with other Coherent Adjustable Ring Mode lasers, power in the center and ring beams can be independently varied and modulated. The CSM-ARM is supplied with a 15 m length process fiber, making it easy to integrate in virtually any production environment. It’s also compatible with the standard process heads from Coherent and other manufacturers.

www.coherent.com