LASER World of PHOTONICS 2011 will present the latest laser material processing techniques

International companies will present the latest photonics components, system solutions, applications and services in four booked-up exhibition halls from May 23 to 26, 2011. With the three focus topics “Lasers and Laser Systems in Production”, “Green Photonics” and “Biophotonics and Life Sciences”, the trade fair and the World of Photonics Congress will together cover all areas of optical technologies. Over and beyond the Congress, the trade fair will be supplemented by an extensive supporting program.

Lasers for production
In addition to optics and optronics, production engineering was one of the best-attended exhibition areas in 2009. LASER World of PHOTONICS will also pay close attention in 2011 to lasers and laser systems for industrial production as a focus topic. The trend towards sustainability means that a large number of companies are faced with the challenge of optimizing production processes and producing more efficiently. Modern laser technology provides highly efficient and modern material processing tools for this purpose.

Extensive practical and supporting program
Together with Bayerisches Laserzentrum GmbH, Erlangen, and the Institute for Machine Tools and Industrial Management of Munich Technical University, Messe München will stage the special show entitled “Photons in Production”. Under the motto “Green Solutions“, the special show will also feature solutions which are used to produce modern power sources and energy storage devices.
One special challenge involves joining of different materials. The live demonstration “Laser beam welding of dissimilar materials“ will show how different materials can be joined together using a pulsed beam source. When modern battery packs for electric vehicles are produced, it is necessary, for example, to interconnect the individual battery cells. The aluminum or nickel connections in the battery cells are welded together using cell connectors made of copper. Laser beam welding ensures high mechanical strength of the connection which also has low electric contact resistance, something that is necessary for smooth functioning of the battery packs.

Another live demonstration will focus on laser-assisted milling.
In this hybrid process, a laser beam is used to heat up the workpiece at the point to be milled. Milling therefore becomes easier. This means that the work method is very tool-friendly and efficient. The wear and tear on the milling tools can therefore be reduced and their service life extended. The objective of the current research is to develop a laser module which can be retrofitted to conventional tool systems.
The presented technologies and system solutions will also be displayed in the exhibition area in Halls C1 and C2.

World of Photonics Congress to shed light on production techniques using lasers
Visitors to the World of Photonics Congress will obtain technical knowledge at first hand. Held as part of the World of Photonics Congress, the Lasers in Manufacturing Conference (LIM 2011) will examine nano, micro and macro process engineering, system technology and process optimization. This Conference is being organized by Wissenschaftliche Gesellschaft für Lasertechnik e.V. (WLT). In parallel with the scientific part of the program, the practical application-related talks in the exhibition halls during the Congress will build bridges between industry, research and science.
Staged under the collective term “Production Optimization”, the practical talks will contain information on highly modern production techniques for lightweight construction and will describe new metal and plastic processing processes. The important topics in other talks will include production and processing of more efficient solar cells for the photovoltaics industry, the latest laser applications in automobile manufacturing and microtechnical applications in electronics.
These and other solution approaches for future challenges will be discussed in both the exhibition areas in Halls C1 and C2 and during the Photonics Forum “Laser and Laser Systems for Production” in Hall C2.
The topics will be rounded off by an overview of the industrial laser technology markets in the 10th International Laser Marketplace, which will be held in the Munich International Congress Center (ICM) on May 25, 2011.