Laser marking technology has become an industry-leading technology used in aerospace, medical device manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, and retail. While the development of laser marking technology has been rapid, manufacturers and users of laser marking systems are now looking for new routes to advance marking technology to meet new challenges and improve processing results.
These challenges come from new materials that need to be processed, and new applications that need to be served - each of which drives the need for growth and innovation, while shaping the market for laser system development.
Trend 1: Laser marking of ceramic circuits
Ceramics are one of the fastest growing materials in the field of laser processing. This material is particularly important in the manufacture of semiconductor parts and circuit boards. Printed circuit boards (PCBs) are often called the "mother of electronic system products" and are a component used in almost all electronic products. Small changes in the development of PCBs have a great impact on market trends. In recent years, the focus has shifted away from the use of ceramics in traditional printed circuit boards (PCBs), which are made of plastic epoxy resins such as FP4. Compared with non-ceramic PCBs, ceramic circuit boards have excellent thermal handling capabilities, are easy to implement, and provide superior performance.
However, many marking technologies, such as screen processing, are not suitable for ceramics. Ink marking of ceramics is cumbersome, requires several consumables, and is not resistant to wear. The brittleness and hardness of ceramics also make it one of the more difficult materials to mark. As a result, in recent years, lasers have emerged as an alternative to ink printing technology, and many laser companies have developed systems specifically suited for ceramic marking, such as diode-pumped solid-state UV lasers, as well as traditional CO2 lasers.
Trend 2: More flexible materials, shapes and sizes
Despite rapid development, ceramic marking in the electronics sector is not currently the largest market, with the largest industry being medical devices, followed by automotive, electronics and general engineering components. The variety of products required varies greatly depending on the industry and the industry involved. The lasers used are suitable for marking different materials, shapes and sizes, as well as different batch sizes. The range of markings it can provide is as diverse as its customer base, with its lasers capable of producing everything from codes to graphics and data matrices - all at high speed and high reproducibility. Therefore, catering to this flexibility is a must for laser marking machine manufacturers.
Its marking systems include gas, fiber and solid-state lasers, including CO2 and YAG systems. Laser marking is all pulsed and operates in the wavelength range of 0.355µm-10.6µm. Each laser has its own characteristics, but there are also some similarities: CO2 lasers can be used to mark plastics, rubber, paper and foils; fiber lasers have advantages when marking steel and certain plastics; YAG lasers are suitable for marking metals and ceramics.
Trend 3: Ensuring and improving traceability
Another important trend in the field of laser marking is ensuring and improving traceability - individual identification of products through unique identification marks on the surface of the product.
This marking can take many forms, but an increasingly popular and important one is the use of data matrices, such as QR codes. By marking individual products with their own unique data matrix code, their key details, such as manufacturer, batch number and life span, can be easily identified in a non-invasive way. This provides quality assurance: consumers and users can determine the exact origin of the product. This quality assurance creates a direct link between consumers and manufacturers and gives products added value, allowing them to compete with lower-cost manufacturing.
Traceability also promotes another trend in the entire manufacturing industry: improving environmental sustainability and reducing ecological impact. By tracking a product and knowing when it fails, or knowing when it reaches the end of its life cycle, manufacturers are better able to proactively replace and recycle it. This also means that products can be returned for refurbishment as intended, so fewer devices may end up in landfills.
Trend 4: Turning glass into data storage
Another exciting new area for laser marking is: data storage.
Efficient data storage systems are produced by encoding data into glass/crystal media using ultrafast lasers. Data is stored in the glass/crystal in the form of micro-ablations and once generated, it can be preserved for an amazing amount of time.