Laser Micro Machining of Alumina by a Picosecond Laser

In the present study aluminium oxide (Al2O3) has been micro structured through laser milling process using a Nd:YVO4 picosecond laser. A statistical approach based on Design of Experiments (DoE) has been successfully adopted with aim to detect which and how the process parameters af-fect the process as well as to explain the effect of the process parameters on the material removal rate and surface quality. The analysed parameters were scanning speed (Ss), power and line distance (i.e. the distance of two consecutive scan lines). The response variables were material removal rate and surface roughness. The ANalysis Of VAriance (ANOVA) has been applied to the results analysis. In order to understand the influence of main parameters and their interactions on the response variables, a Central Composite Design (CCD) has been chosen and performed successfully.