Hi all,
We're running into a strange issue with our diy lasercutter that has been running near perfectly for the past 2 years.
All of a sudden, our laser output seems to very depending on the power output. When we cut a line at 50% power and above, the line is nice and crisp. If we go below that 50% threshold, the line gets "wider".
The center of the wider line is still equally thin, but there is "ramping" on the edge of the line.
After noticing this, I also checked the "raw" output of the laser tube at different powers and noticed quite a difference in TEM modes. The >50% gives a nice TEM00, while everything below seems to give a TEM10.
Here are some images for clarification:
Attachment 282684
note: I think the 10% version is actually only looking ok because it's lacking the power to make the outer circle of the TEM10 visible. Anything below 10% doesn't give us any output at all.
Attachment 282686
note: TEM00 at 50% and TEM10 at anything below that.
Am I right to think the TEM10 is the culprit for the wider lines at lower powers? What could be the cause of this sudden change of TEM mode?
I'll try cleaning the tube output mirror, see if that changes anything. Could the laser PSU change anything? Software?
Tech specs:
AWC608 controller with LaserCad, all latest patches en software versions
100W Reci Laser (W4) from 2013.
Any help would be great!
Thanks,
Kevin