Laser Spot Micro-Welding of Ultra-Thin Steel Sheet

This paper reports a mechanism understanding how to reduce the solder joint failure phenomenon in the laser spot micro-welding process of ultra-thin steel sheets. An optimization method to improve solder joint service life is proposed. In this study, the time-dependent dynamic behaviors of the keyhole and the weld pool are simulated, and the temperatures in the keyhole of two different laser pulse waveforms are compared. The results show that laser energy attenuation mode (LEAM) can only obtain shallow weld depth because of the premature decay of the laser power of waveform, resulting in the laser beam that cannot be concentrated in the keyhole. The temperature inside the keyhole of LEAM fluctuates significantly, which shows a downward trend. Due to the existence of the peak power of waveform in laser energy continuous mode (LECM), the large angle of inclination of the wall of the keyhole inside the melt pool is more conducive to the multiple reflections of the laser beam in the keyhole and increases the absorption rate of the laser energy by the base material, resulting in the “keyhole effect”. But the temperature in the keyhole gradually rises, close to the evaporation temperature. A method combining LEAM and LECM to improve the solder joint service life by optimizing the temperature in the keyhole indirectly by adjusting the peak power of the laser pulse waveform is proposed in this study. The experimental results show that the weld depth can be optimized from 0.135 mm to 0.291 mm, and the tensile strength can be optimized from 88 MPa to 288 MPa. The bonding performance between the upper and lower plates is effectively improved. It can reach the required weld depth in a short time and improve the welding efficiency of the laser spot micro-welding process. The simulation results show that the temperature inside the keyhole is well optimized below the evaporation temperature of the material, which can avoid the violent evaporation of the welding process and keep the whole welding process in a stable state. By optimizing the laser pulse waveform, the temperature inside the keyhole can reach 3300 K, and it is always in a stable state than before optimization. The stable temperature inside the keyhole can help to reduce violent oscillation and spattering of the molten pool and improve welding efficiency and joint life. The research can help provide effective process guidance for the optimization of different laser pulse waveforms in the micro-welding process.