Abstract: A method of welding at least two sheets using a high energy density radiation beam that preferably is a laser beam or an electron beam for producing a welded lap joint that is substantially completely fused across the width of overlap of the sheets preferably for enabling shaping or forming to be performed such that at least one of the sheets and at least portion of a weld line defined between the overlapped sheets are bent or three dimensionally contoured. In practicing a preferred embodiment of the method, the sheets are overlapped and welded by directing at least one radiation beam toward the overlapped sheets having sufficient power density and for a sufficient amount of time to weld the sheets such that they are substantially completely fused from front to back in the overlap region.

Abstract: Full field mask illumination enhancement methods and apparatus for high power laser systems for ablation utilizing a mask to define the pattern of the material to be removed by ablation wherein the percentage transmissive area of the mask is small. The laser emission is focused to a point or small area to pass through a small hole in an end plate in a light pipe wherein the internal surface of the light pipe and end plate are both highly reflective. The exit end of the light pipe is imaged onto a telecentric lens adjacent the mask or reticle, which mask or reticle is highly reflective except where defining areas for ablation. Laser emission passing through the reticle is imaged onto a work piece, while light reflected by the reticle substantially retraces either its own ray path or that of another ray impinging on the same area of the reticle.

Abstract: First, welding protrusions of two aluminum alloy plates are butted against each other, and an engagement projection of one of the aluminum alloy plates is brought into engagement with an engagement recess of the other aluminum alloy plate, thereby maintaining the butted state and defining voids in back of butt regions of the welding protrusions in a direction of irradiation of a laser beam. Then, the laser beam is irradiated to the butt regions to bond the welding protrusions to each other. The Al.sub.2 O.sub.3 films located on the surfaces of the welding protrusions on a back side in a direction of irradiation of the laser beam are pushed into the voids by a molten pool and hence, they cannot intrude into a weld zone to form a notch. By employing this arrangement in the butt welding using the laser beam, the need for a jig for maintaining the butted state of the aluminum alloy plates is eliminated and a butt joint having a high strength can be obtained.

Abstract: The present invention is a method of joining two materials by single pulse electron radiation. The method comprises the step of disposing a first material layer adjacent to a second material layer such that an interface is disposed therebetween. Then there is the step of irradiating the interface with a pulsed electron beam such that energy of the pulsed electron beam is selectively deposited in a narrow spatial region and localized at the interface to produce an effective joint between the first and second material layers in a single pulse. Preferably, before the irradiating step, there is the step of calculating an optimum temperature profile across the interface depending on electron energy, beam current density and pulse length of the pulsed electron beam. The electron energy of the pulsed electron beam is preferably in the range of 100 keV to 10 MeV. The pulsed electron beam current density is preferably in the range of 1-1000 A/cm.sup.2.

Abstract: A method of welding using a high energy density radiation beam such as an electron beam or preferably a laser beam to weld a pair of sheets using an oblong focused beam spot for reducing the power density of the oblong beam spot to maximize welding speed while minimizing welding defects. The high energy density radiation beam source has a power of at least one kilowatt for achieving Keyhole welding, and a beam delivery system capable of focusing the beam into an oblong spot shape, such as a generally rectangular focused beam spot shape, and directing the beam spot onto at least one of the sheets to weld the sheets. During welding, the beam is focused into an oblong focused beam spot and trained on at least one of the sheets to weld them with the longitudinal axis of the beam spot preferably oriented generally tangent to the weld line, generally parallel to the weld direction, or acutely angled relative to the tangent to the welding direction.

Abstract: The output of a continuously pumped, Q-switched, Nd:YAG laser (10) is frequency converted to provide ultraviolet light (62) for forming vias (72, 74) in multi-layered targets (40). The parameters of the output pulses (62) are selected to facilitate substantially clean, simultaneous or sequential drilling or via formation in a wide variety of materials such as metals, organic dielectrics, and reinforcement materials having different thermal absorption characteristics in response to ultraviolet light. These parameters typically include at least two of the following criteria: high average power of greater than about 100 milliwatts measured over the beam spot area, a temporal pulse width shorter than about 100 nanoseconds, a spot diameter of less than about 50 microns, and a repetition rate of greater than about one kilohertz.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method for forming a high capacitance thin film capacitor comprising forming layers of dielectric material in amorphous, nanocrystalline and polycrystalline configuration and arranging the resulting layers between upper and lower electrodes. The invention further comprises dielectric articles such as capacitors formed in accordance with the method of the invention and includes their use in an electronic circuit.

Abstract: A fixing heater comprises a substrate having an insulative property and a heat generating member with electrical resistance printed on a surface of the substrate. The heat generating member is a film-like shape having a direction and a pair of edge portions opposing one another, wherein one of the edge portions is trimmed in the direction. The heat generating member has a heat generating portion having opposing one and another edge portions, wherein one of the edge portions is trimmed in the direction throughout the heat generating portion. The heat generating portion is trimmed so as to provide the trimmed edge having partially different width along the direction.

Abstract: A laser marking apparatus, capable of marking at a high scanning speed, effectively utilizing a laser power, and providing high marking accuracy, irradiates an incident laser beam from a laser beam source onto a marking surface by raster-scanning through a raster scanning system. The raster scanning system includes an X-direction polarizing mirror, a Y-direction polarizing mirror, a field lens, and a mask. A double polarizing prism, which includes a pair of polarizing prisms (13a, 13b) for branching the incident laser beam (1) into twin laser beams, is arranged in series at an intermediate position between the laser beam source (2) and the upstream one of the X-direction polarizing mirror (3) and the Y-direction polarizing mirror (8).

Abstract: In a laser machining apparatus and method according to the present invention, a chip conveyor provided under the machining head parallel to the moving direction of the machining head recovers chips dropping near a movable area of a machining head, the chip tray provided in a section where the chip conveyor does not exit, receives chips dropping in a movable area of the machining table where the chip conveyor does not exist, and brushes provided under the machining table move along with the machining table to clean off chips stored in the chip trays and drop the chips onto the chip conveyor.

Abstract: Nanoparticles are produced by exposing microparticles to an energy beam, particularly to a beam of laser light, above the ablation threshold of the microparticles. Nanoparticles are produced having a narrow size distribution.

Abstract: A laser cutting method with which cutting faults at the time of cutting condition changing are substantially eliminated. Impingement of the laser beam on the workpiece is stopped when the laser beam reaches a position along the path where the first cutting conditions are to be changed to second cutting conditions. The laser beam is then retracted along the path a predetermined distance from the position where the first cutting conditions are to be switched to the second cutting conditions. After a delay time, the laser beam is again moved along the predetermined path to cut the workpiece under the second cutting conditions. The retraction distance is set in accordance with the thickness of the workpiece. Also, an assist gas may be sprayed on the workpiece in the vicinity of the cutting path while impingement of the beam is stopped.

Abstract: A capacitor array in which a plurality of inner electrodes are formed so as to be overlapped with each other in the thickness direction while being separated by a ceramic layer in a ceramic sintered body to construct a plurality of capacitor units, and the plurality of capacitor units are separated from each other by a layer having a lower dielectric constant than that of ceramics composing the sintered body.

Abstract: A paper pulp defibering or refining plate in accordance with the invention comprises a comminuting surface having a large number of ridges separated by grooves. The plate body is made from a first material such as stainless steel or cast iron providing the overall mechanical strength of the plate in use. The upper part of the ridges is a layer of an abrasion resistant material based on grains of tungsten carbide bound in a metal alloy whose melting and brazing characteristics are appropriate to laser resurfacing on the plate body. The ridges are resurfaced successively by scanning a laser beam and a powder spray nozzle in one or more passes.

Abstract: A method of removing a prescribed portion of a semiconductor film or a metal film involves irradiating the prescribed portion to be removed with a first energy beam, and then with a second energy beam. The energy densities and beam widths of the first and second energy beams are each separately controlled or selected to avoid damaging an underlayer under the film and to reduce or avoid deformation of a periphery around the removed portion.

Abstract: A method and laser cutting system for cutting a secondary piece from a board is disclosed. A board is provided having a generally planar first and second surfaces separated by a predetermined distance or thickness and having a central plane located midway between the first and second surfaces. First and second lenses are arranged relative to the board with the focal point of the respective first and second lenses disposed intermediate the first and second surfaces of the board. Laser beams from a pair of lasers are propagated through the respective lenses with each laser beam converging at the focal point of its respective lens and cutting the workpiece from its respective surface toward the other surface. Ideally, the focused beams diverge sufficiently along the cutting path such that each laser beam reduces in intensity sufficiently so as not to cause harm to the opposing laser delivering systems or support structure.

Abstract: A laser beam machine easily prepares a data bank of machining conditions and also easily creates a machining program from the machining conditions. When a suitable trial machining condition D1 is derived, the trial machining condition D1 is stored in a memory area as the machining condition for a machining step concerned. The machining condition is stored in accordance with a signal entered by an operator to create a machining condition data bank. In addition, an output state data D2 of a laser oscillator obtained during laser beam machining according to the trial machining condition D1 is stored. A registration code is assigned to the machining condition and the stored output state data. A machining condition corresponding to a machining path specified in a generalized machining program P.sub.0 is extracted from the machining condition data bank and the extracted machining condition is set in the generalized machining program to create a specific machining program P.

Abstract: The apparatus comprises a motor head provided with a chuck on which a matrix-bearing cylinder having a smooth external cylindrical rubber surface can be mounted. An engraving head comprises a laser beam predisposed perpendicularly to the external cylindrical surface of the cylinder.

Abstract: Windings for an electric motor are formed by depositing successive layers of conductive material and etching into the conductive material with a precisely-controlled high-energy beam. A computer stores information on the exact structure of the monolith of windings to be built, in the form of a series of successive planar cross-sections of the monolith. In making the monolith, one deposits a layer of conductive material onto a workpiece, bonds the conductive material to the workpiece, and cuts a pattern into the layer, using a high-energy beam in the presence of an oxidizing atmosphere. The beam causes the formation of electrically-insulating oxides which separate the layer into distinct conductive regions, according to a pattern defined by one of the stored cross-sections. In an alternative, one can also inject additional insulating material into the cuts formed by the beam. The monolith is thus built up, layer by layer, in a series of iterations.

Abstract: A heating roller for fixation has a hollow body with a wall thickness of 1-3 mm. A deposit prevention layer is formed on the outer surface of the roller body. The roller body has excellent heat conductivity. A resistance heat generating member is bonded on and anchored to the inner surface of the roller body. The resistance heat generating member is a flexible heat generating sheet which is formed by adhering a resistance heat generating body composed of predetermined patterns of resistance members, formed of stainless steel or copper foil, on the surface of an insulating film material, made of a polyimide resin, that has heat resistance and insulating characteristics.