The influence of process parameters on the laser-induced coloring of titanium

Abstract

This paper presents the results of the measurements and analysis of the influence of laser process parameters on the color obtained. The study was conducted for titanium (Grade 2) using a commercially available industrial pulsed fiber laser. It was determined how a variety of different laser process parameters, such as laser power, the scanning speed of the material, the temperature of the material, the size of the marked area, and the position of the sample, relative to both the focal plane and the center of the working field of the system, affect the repeatability of the colors created. For an objective assessment of color changes, an optical spectrometer and the CIE color difference parameter Δ Eab* were used. Our paper explains why the tolerance of process parameters highly depends on the specific color. Additionally, a comparison of the results for titanium with those obtained for stainless steel in a previous study is presented. Based on this analysis, a number of necessary modifications are proposed to laser systems commonly used for monochrome marking in order to improve repeatability in color marking. © 2013 The Author(s).