Weld line transverse energy density distribution measurement in laser transmission welding of thermoplastics

While laser beam profiling techniques are available for the measurement of a laser beam power profile, such techniques are difficult or impossible to use in order to characterize the power profile of the beam which has passed through the light-scattering semi-crystalline polymer (such as nylon). This paper presents a technique for measuring the scattering of the laser beam caused by the laser-transparent part in laser transmission welding. The technique is easy to implement and does not require specialized or expensive equipment. It relies on measurements of line widths for a sequence of lines left on the polymer surface by a rapidly moving laser beam at progressively increasing powers. The line width and power information is then used to obtain the distribution of the laser energy across the weld line. An application for a case of a high-power diode laser and (glass-reinforced and natural) polyamide 6 is presented.