Effect of Ultrashort Pulse Laser Structuring of Stainless Steel on Laser-based Heat Conduction Joining of Polyamide Steel Hybrids

Abstract The objective of this paper is to investigate how microstructures generated by ultrashort pulse laser structuring of stainless steel affect the laser-based joining of thermoplastic metal hybrids. For structuring experiments a picosecond laser (λ = 064 nm) is used. The machined surfaces are topographically analyzed by optical microscopy. The experimental setup for the joining process consists of a disk laser (λ = 1030 nm), a scanner optic and a clamping device for lap joint. The joined specimens are mechanically analyzed by tensile shear tests and the influence of ultrashort pulse laser structuring on the mechanical properties of the dissimilar joints is evaluated. Besides, a fracture analysis of the mechanically tested specimens using scanning electron microscope (SEM) images and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) mapping is done.