Laser microstructuring of steel surfaces for tribological applications

Laser technique is employed to improve substantially the tribological behav ior of microstructured stainless steel surfaces. The laser-generated patter ns consisting of precisely ablated microcraters were produced using a flash lamp pumped, Q-switched Nd:YAG laser. The rims of resolidified melt around the craters are typical features of laser-produced microstructures and the laser parameters were established where their extent was notably reduced. The remaining rims could easily be removed by gentle polishing. The laser-s tructured substrates were tribologically tested by a sliding tribometer und er standard conditions. The test results show clearly that the microstructu res improve the lifetime of the samples.