LAUSR

Hot-dipped galvanized steel is processed with short- and ultrashort-pulsed lasers in air at near-infrared wavelengths with pulse durations ranging from 350 fs to 241 ns. The morphology of the ablated craters (processed over a range of laser fluence levels and a number of laser pulses) is analyzed by confocal laser scanning microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. The ablation threshold of galvanized steel is found to increase with laser pulse durations following a simple power F t h = A . τ B law. Longer pulse durations in the nanosecond regime, as compared to pulse durations in the picosecond and femtosecond regime, result in higher ablation efficiency and energy penetration depth at the cost of surface quality.