ROFIN introduces Powerline L 400 for high-speed edge ablation of thin film solar modules
Rofin-Baasel Lasertech GmbH & Co. KG, Starnberg, Germany, has introduced the PowerLine L 400 featuring higher laser power and shorter pulse length, responding to shorter cycle time requirements of various customers.
With its PowerLine L series, Rofin introduced q-switched solid state lasers specifically designed for micro-material processing applications that require high average power and high pulse energy. Examples are thin film removal on glass and flexible materials, ablation of dielectric layers, silicon processing, drilling and cutting. In the 1064 nm class, Rofin had great success with the Powerline L 300 for edge ablation of thin film layers in the production of a-Si/µ-Si, CdTe and CIS solar cells.
Selective opening of dielectric layers and direct laser doping currently draw a lot of interest in crystalline solar cell manufacturing. For both applications, the frequency-doubled PowerLine L 100 SHG already proved its perfect applicability in mass production at various customers. The laser source offers optimum beam characteristics and sufficient power for large production scale. Green lasers with 532 nm show the desired near-surface absorption in silicon and can be equipped a wide range of long-living optical components and fibers. Rofin now can officially announce the patent pending beam delivery with a rectangular shaped fiber. This provides a top-hat beam profile and homogenous energy distribution within the entire laser spot area at sufficient depth of focus.
The Nd:YAG lasers are efficiently diode pumped and designed for industrially reliable 24/7 operation. The PowerLine L 100 SHG uses a high performance SHG assembly with harmonic generator crystal for frequency conversion. The unique principle of q-switching make peak pulse performances possible that are a 1000 times higher than the cw laser power. This process is repeated with frequencies up to 50,000 Hz. The pulse lengths are in the range of 50 to 300 ns.