Laser texturing of imprinting dies using nanosecond pulses. Applications for automotive industry

The machining response of imprinting dies when subjected to nano – second
laser processing is investigated in this research. Laser texturing of different patterns were conducted in order to improve the surface functionality of metal sheets obtained during the imprinting process. The contribution of the material ejected from the inner crater and re – deposition on the substrate dominates the surface profile after the laser texturing process. In particular, when laser texturing of “open” structures (overlapped pulses) is considered, the surface profile did not match properly with the optimal structuring previously designed. The experimental results concerning to imprinting trials showed that the roughness transfer capability reached maximum values (~ 50%) when high contact pressure conditions were considered. This research shows the potential of the laser texturing technique in the field of micro-structuring deterministic patterns on imprinting dies, leading to the production of functionalized metal sheets for the automotive industry.