Laser ablation of Al 2 O 3 -TiC ceramics: influence of laser fluence

This paper presents a study of laser ablation of Al2O3-TiC ceramics. The dependence of the ablation rate and of the surface topography and constitution after ablation as a function of laser fluence and number of pulses was investigated. At low laser fluences, the surface develops a globular topography which is responsible for the decrease of the ablation rate and the increase of roughness. At higher laser fluences, the removal rate and the surface topography slightly depend on the number of pulses and on the laser fluence. The roughness also increases with the number of pulses but smoother surfaces can be achieved.