Optimized parameters of picosecond pulsed lasers show promise for efficient lithium-ion electrode manufacturing
Optimized parameters of picosecond pulsed lasers show promise for efficient lithium-ion electrode manufacturing lead image
Lithium-ion batteries help form the backbone of myriad electric devices. Optimizing which lasers to use for cutting and notching electrodes, however, remains an open question for the field with implications on productivity and quality.
Heidari Orojloo and Demir characterized and catalogued a variety of parameters for picosecond-pulsed lasers to shed light on how to pick the best laser solution for a given job. Through extensive experimentation, they explored the effects of changing the number of pulses, repetition rate and burst shape across a number of materials, including aluminum foil, cathode, copper foil, and anodes.
Their findings have led to an analytical model aimed at scaling up the cutting process with an ultrashort pulse laser system for lithium-ion battery manufacturing.
“One of the most relevant outcomes of the work is that for separating electrode materials, an optimal laser fluence appears to exist,” author Pourya Heidari Orojloo said. “Once this value is determined, the productivity can be increased by increasing the pulse repetition rate. While this phenomenon has been shown in ablation-based machining, it has not been fully exploited for full-separation cutting.”
The duo found that increasing the number of pulses per burst and the repetition rate improves productivity and quality, especially on the metal foil. Higher productivity at higher average power can be achieved by increasing the pulse repetition rate towards the MHz range with moderate pulse energies.
The group hopes their work facilitates further lithium-ion battery production and looks to explore the effects of pulse duration with bursts on the femtosecond level, especially as it pertains to next-generation solid-state batteries.
Source: “Study of burst mode for enhancing the ps-laser cutting performance of lithium-ion battery electrodes,” by Pourya Heidari Orojloo and Ali Gökhan Demir, Journal of Laser Applications (2024). The article can be accessed at https://doi.org/10.1063/7.0001417 .
This paper is part of the Laser Manufacturing for Future Mobility Collection, learn more here .
