Tailoring the Pressure Profile of TEA-CO₂ Laser-Induced Shock Waves for Mechanical Forming and Separation Processes

For laser shock processes, the acting pressure can be increased by confining the propagation of the laser-induced plasma. Water or glass is commonly used as confinement for laser shock waves induced by Nd:YAG-lasers. This is not possible for the longer wavelength of TEA-CO₂ lasers due to higher absorption coefficients. Instead, the acting pressure can be manipulated with a pressure cell above the workpiece. Two different pressure cells were designed to test the versatility of this concept. A cylindrical pressure cell design was used to confine the propagation of the laser-induced plasma and a parabolic pressure cell design was used to reflect the shock wave back to the workpiece. The effect of the pressure cells was analysed by time-resolved force measurements and evaluated for maximum force and force duration. This study shows that the cylindrical pressure cell strongly increases the maximum force while the parabolic pressure cell maximises the duration of force application. Furthermore, the pressure cells have been applied to the laser shock-based processes laser shock punching and LiSE hardness measurement. The cylindrical pressure cell strongly enhances the results of both processes, while the parabolic pressure cell shows only a minor effect.