Picosecond laser ablation characteristics of satellite-used carbon fiber-reinforced composites

The near-infrared picosecond laser ablation characteristics (threshold, heat-affected zone (HAZ) and morphology) for graphitized carbon fiber-reinforced cyanate ester resin (M55/BS-4), a mesoscopically heterogeneous composite, were studied. The ablation threshold and its incubation effect for the composite were measured based on the diameter-regression method, with the single-pulse threshold derived from the incubation model. The influence of incident laser fluence (0.6-26J/cm²) and beam scanning speed (0.8-5m/s) on the ablation quality were analyzed. It was show that the ablation threshold, morphology and thickness of HAZ can be controlled by processing parameters for the composite. Well-defined groove with clear edge and minor HAZ, probably an indication of mesoscopically uniform removal for the material's heterogeneous structure, was obtained by using a proper combination of scanning speed and incident fluence. A satellite-used carbon-fiber skin as large as 1m² based on laser cutting was demonstrated by using further optimized processing parameters.