Accessible, flexible, cost-effective laser manufacturing
Laser Machining of Polymers - Cutting Polymers
Polymers are often used in medical and biotech devices (e.g. for meshes, filters, tubes, microchannels) and in the microelectronic and sensor industries for insulating layers in multi-level devices. In all these cases, the high precision required has to be matched to high quality (i.e. lack of damage and burrs, no melting, high reproducibility). Other high precision use of polymers include their use as deposition masks in coating systems.
Many types of polymers can be laser machined, the most common ones being polyimide (PI), polycarbonate (PC) and polyester (PET). Other polymers include PMMA, PTFE, SU8, other photoresists and acrylics.
100 micron wide grooves in polycarbonate showing 10 micron wide walls between grooves.
100 micron wide slots in polyimide.
1mm wide Y-junction in polymer microfluidic device.
200 micron holes in 50 micron thick polyimide.
200 micron holes in 50 micron thick PTFE.
400 micron diameter hole in 600 micron thick silicone elastomer.
80 micron wide slot in PMMA tube.
Complex shapes machined in SU8 resist.
High quality cutting of 50 micron polyimide.
Holes in 95 micron thick UPVC.
Laser-cut parts from 50 micron thick polyimide.
Machining of 500 micron wide slots in polycarbonate.
Microflaps in 50 micron thick polyimide with 75 micron machined gaps.
Precision cutting of 50 micron thick polyimide.
Precision cutting of slots in 1mm polymer tube.
Serpentine channels in polycarbonate.
Ultrahigh quality cutting of 50 micron thick polyimide.
100um wide v-grooves in polycarbonate.
Machining of moulds for coils with 30um elements.
Gaskets cut from silicone sheet.JPG.
Micromachined serpentine channel in polycarbonate.
Polymer microneedles with shaped sides and through hole.
2mm square well in PTFE.
300um hexagons in polycarbonate.
400um blind holes in polycarbonate.
Polycarbonate 300um wide channel.
Polymer microneedles with double holes.