Abstract
Beam quality of a CW CO2 laser is an important factor in laser processing of materials. We have demonstrated that stabilized discharge decreases instantaneous fluctuations of the power and the beam profile. Thermally induced optical distortion in a ZeSe output coupler and a lens is critical in the high power region. A TEM00-dominant mode causes more influence than a TEM01*-dominant mode on optical distortion, which affects beam propagation and focusability. The experimental result of piercing shows that the pulse shaping performance of laser is effective on material processing.
