In PCB production, it is necessary to punch and cut according to certain specifications. If each operation requires a mold or a protective plate, it is too troublesome and not efficient. It is easier to use laser cutting. Laser cutting mainly includes carbon dioxide laser (CO2 laser) and ultraviolet laser (UV laser). Let's take a look at their working principles, advantages and disadvantages.
The carbon dioxide laser cutting machine is a gas laser with CO2 gas as the working material. The discharge tube is filled with CO2, helium, nitrogen, hydrogen, and xenon, mainly with CO2, and others as supplements. A high voltage is applied to the electrode, and the discharge tube discharges, and there is a laser output on the germanium mirror.
The advantage of CO2 laser is that there are relatively abundant spectral lines, and the laser output of dozens of spectral lines around 10 microns. The output beam has high optical quality, good coherence, narrow line width and stable operation. It has relatively large power and relatively high energy conversion efficiency, and the energy conversion efficiency can reach 30-40%, which also exceeds the general gas laser.
Ultraviolet laser cutting machine is a cutting system that adopts ultraviolet laser, using high-energy laser source and precise control of the laser beam, which can effectively increase the speed and obtain more accurate results.
The advantages of UV lasers are: high-performance UV lasers have the characteristics of short wavelength, high beam quality, and high peak power, which can reduce the size of the focused spot and ensure processing accuracy. Different thicknesses, different materials, and different patterns can be cut.
When PCB splitting or cutting, you can choose CO2 laser. The processing cost is relatively low, and the laser power provided can reach several kilowatts. However, a lot of heat is generated during the cutting process, which causes severe carbonization at the edges. UV laser is especially suitable for cutting and marking hard boards, rigid-flex boards, flexible boards and their accessories.