Laser microcaving of steel with solid state lasers

In this contribution a technique will be presented using a cw solid-state laser for high precision micro-machining of steel which avoids recast layers and burr formation. This processing technique gets rid of the detrimental melt production by using oxidizing for material removal. The produced oxide chips can be removed from the structure completely by compressed air. No processing chemicals are necessary like in etching techniques. Other advantages of this method are sharp edges without any burrs, smooth bottoms in the structure ground and a small heat affected zone compared to material removal by melting.