Tag Archives: UV Lasers

Meet PhotoMachining, Inc. – August’s Featured Corporate Member

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In 1997, John O’Connell and Ronald Schaeffer founded PhotoMachining, Inc., a world leader in precision micromachining applications.

The company specializes in the use of Ultraviolet (UV) and Ultra Short Pulse (USP) lasers. Their lasers come in

3 wavelength femtosecond laser micromachining system

a wide variety of wavelengths, which enables them to provide the laser industry with laser micromachining, contract manufacturing, and laser micro machining systems for industrial applications specific to customer requests.

“The development of laser technology has occurred to a great extent over the last 20 years and we have always tried to have the newest lasers available,” said Dr. Ronald Schaeffer, Chief Executive Officer with PhotoMachining. “We were at the forefront of developing novel laser techniques using high pulse rate USP lasers with both fixed optics and galvo scanners.”

Their team of approximately 25 employees make up two divisions: the Systems Division and the Job Shop Division. Both divisions work together to create innovative systems for their customers’ unique industry needs. The company’s services reach a large variety of markets, which include medical devices, microelectronics, and semiconductors. They have even collaborated on projects related to aerospace and defense.

Laser process development engineer micromachining a novel medical device

“We are proud to deliver products to our customers that give them a competitive edge,” said Schaeffer. “We are particularly proud of the processes we have specifically developed for some of the leading medical device manufacturers, which have greatly reduced costs and downtime for our clients.” PhotoMachining, Inc. is continuously trying to innovate and grow. “Our staff is highly motivated to tackle some of the most difficult manufacturing processes regarding precision and economic viability in a production environment,” Schaeffer said. “It requires multiple talents in laser material interaction, systems integration, automation and software to produce highly reliable laser machining systems.”

Based out of Pelham, New Hampshire, the company is looking forward to exploring new initiatives. According to Schaeffer, one such initiative is, “3D printing in optically clear materials through Selective Laser Etching (SLE) with LightFab.”

“The SLE process involves exposing hard brittle and otherwise transparent materials like

Examples of micron-scale machining in soft (plastics) to hard (diamond) materials

Quartz and Fused Silica to USP laser light and then chemically etching the exposed area away, where etching selectivity after laser exposure is enhanced over a thousand times,” Schaeffer said. “This method makes 3D precision parts by essentially 3D printing the pattern inside the bulk of the material. SLE is expected to play a major role in many manufacturing processes such as microfluidics.”

PhotoMachining Inc., an LIA corporate member since 2005, actively participates in a number of networking opportunities, allowing them to rub elbows with industry leaders, scientists, and investors from around the world.

“We are active participants at ICALEO and LME conferences and find that LIA is a great place to meet others involved in the laser industry,” Schaeffer said. “LIA is like home.”

The company is always looking towards the future by working alongside new companies with fresh ideas. “Although we work with Fortune 500 corporations,” said O’Connell. “It is gratifying to help startups by producing a handful of prototypes and developing economically viable full production volumes.”

Ron Schaeffer is an active educator within the laser community and has given countless seminars on laser technology and laser materials processing.  For an example of his work, here is a short video on “How Lasers Work”. For more information about PhotoMachining Inc., please visit http://www.photomachining.com/

This corporate member feature was written by Brandon Kalloo in collaboration with PhotoMachining, Inc.

Introduction to Laser Micromanufacturing

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By Ronald D. Schaeffer

Laser micromanufacturing is just like traditional manufacturing except that we use photons (light!) instead of, for instance, drill bits and saw blades. Lasers are used for machining, marking, welding and surface treatment. This article provides a brief summary of how lasers are used in several exemplary situations. In conclusion, a discussion is made concerning the use of Contract Manufacturers with respect to owning in-house laser tools. First though, it is important to define ‘micromanufacturing.’ Our definition of it is that the process involves lasers for material removal, addition or alteration and furthermore, the feature sizes on target are less than 1 mm (and usually much less) and the material thickness is also less than 1 mm (and again, usually much less). Continue reading →

Using UV Laser Surface Treatment to Modify the Wettability Characteristics of Polyamide 6,6 and its Effects on Osteoblast Cell Activity

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By: David G. Waugh and Jonathan Lawrence

Wolfson School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, Loughborough University, UK
Lincoln School of Engineering, University of Lincoln, UK

The need for biological implants grows year upon year and it has been realized that there is a drive within the biomedical industry for cheaper and easier to manufacture products. This could be met by the use of polymeric materials; however, it has been seen that polymeric materials can often fail clinically and be rejected by body due to the fact that the surface properties do not give rise to adequate cell growth. One way to counteract this is to treat the polymeric surfaces prior to the implantation such that they then have properties which enhance the cell response and ultimately reduce the failure/rejection rate. Many techniques have been developed for the surface treatment of polymeric materials; however, many only have the ability to modify one surface parameter at any one time and can have detrimental effects on the bulk properties. One promising and interesting method to carry out these surface treatments is that of the use of laser technology which can be applied to a number of different materials ranging from ceramics, to metals, to polymers. Lasers have the ability to change both the surface dimensions (roughness and surface pattern) and the surface chemistry simultaneously which can then lead to a change in the wettability characteristics. Wettability characteristics are those surface parameters which are directly linked to the wetting nature of materials; for instance, the contact angle is the angle the liquid droplet makes with the solid surface and the surface free energy is the energy associated with the solid surface giving rise to the contact angle observed. The wettability characteristics of a material have already been shown that they can be implemented to predict the adhesive nature of materials. As a result of this, many believe that wettability can be implemented as a tool to estimate the bioactive nature of materials. This would give a massive opportunity to the biological industry as it would allow those within the bio-implant field to have the ability to predict whether an implant will fail. Continue reading →