Numerical analysis of metal/ceramic bilayer materials systems in laser forming

In the present work the finite element method is used to investigate the mechanical behavior of metal/ceramic bilayer plates during laser forming processes. A bilayer material system including an Al 6061 metal layer and a SiC ceramic layer is modeled. The Al 6061 metal material is considered as an elasto-plastic material with temperature dependent thermo-mechanical properties. The ceramic is assumed to be an elastic material. The temperature and stress fields are analyzed and the effects of laser power and scan velocity on the bending angle of the plate are investigated. The numerical results show that the metal/ceramic bilayer materials system can be deformed by the thermal stress induced in laser forming. Moreover, the residual tensile stress exists at both the top and bottom surfaces and there are compressive stresses at the interface between two materials.