The fabrication of polycrystalline diamond micro drill based on ultrashort pulsed laser

Abstract

High precision micro polycrystalline diamond (PCD) cutting tools with complex geometrical features are di cult to manufacture by traditional processes, which are widely used in the eld of aerospace, automotive, electronics, etc. Ultrashort pulse laser (ULPL) with extremely high peak power and short pulse duration is the ideal tool for processing PCD materials. In this study, an industrial picosecond laser source with wavelength of 1064 nm and pulse duration less than 10 picoseconds was used to process PCD micro drills. A graphical user interface (GUI) and a computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) modules have been developed. A twist PCD micro drill with a diameter of 0.75 mm was successfully fabricated by picosecond pulsed laser roughing and grinding nishing. Mechanisms of ablation removal and surface integrity generation in picosecond pulsed laser processing of PCD materials were discussed. The results show that PCD micro drills roughed by a picosecond pulsed laser have sharp geometric edges. The thermal damage layer of the PCD material was very small and could be completely removed in the grinding nishing process. Compared to conventional grinding, processing time of the new method is reduced by 48.2%.