Laser welding: techniques and applications

Laser material processing technology has deeply penetrated into various industrial applications since 1966 when the first industrial CO2 laser was built. Since then the versatility and importance of lasers in material processing has been gaining recognition and acceptance with the result that many industries in the developed countries utilize laser systems. This has encouraged further investigations into the improvement of material processing methods using laser to overcome the presently confronted difficulties. Laser is the versatile tool both for metals and non-metals and as a single heat source it can perform multi functions which is not possible by any other heat source. (author). 71 refs., 32 figs