Frequency-selective surface processing of polymer materials by pulsed CO laser radiation

An experimental investigation was made of the interaction of radiation from a frequency-selective pulsed electron-beam-controlled discharge CO laser on polymer materials (nylon and polyethylene terephthalate) with intense absorption bands near the wavelength ~6 μm. The parameters of the interaction (geometry and method of irradiation of a material; temporal, spectral, and energy characteristics of the laser radiation) corresponding to the appearance of microstructures of different types on the surface of the processed material were determined. An analysis was made of the relationship between the structural changes in the materials at the microscopic level and visual macroscopic changes in the physical properties of the samples processed by laser radiation.