By Katherine Caponi		 Big Kids
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Researchers at the Center for Laser-Aided Intelligent Manufacturing study laser drilling and welding using Alliance supercomputers.

"A child gets interested in the light at an early age when she sees the first rainbow, or views a colorful spectrum created by diffraction through beveled glass, or burns paper by focusing sunlight through a magnifying glass. You always wonder about the mysterious ways light works. We are a bunch of big kids still playing with light to see how we can use pure light to society's benefit."

Jyotirmoy Mazumder displays a deceptively childlike delight in studying the pure, focused light of lasers. However, this "big kid" has a very grownup mission. Laser drilling and welding are quickly replacing traditional methods of materials processing. The market for laser manufacturing constantly increases as new applications and technological advances give it increased potential for efficiency.
team members
Jyotirmoy Mazumder, Pravansu S.
Mohanty, and Hyungson Ki.
team picture


The problem is that laser processing is physically complex. During manufacturing, the material evolves through phases—liquid, solid, vapor, and plasma. Mazumder and his co-workers, Hyungson Ki and Pravansu S. Mohanty of the Center for Laser-Aided Intelligent Manufacturing (CLAIM) at the University of Michigan, are studying the development of the phases to help streamline laser drilling and welding.

 

They rely not only on their collective knowledge of physics, mechanical engineering, and materials science, but also on NCSA's Origin2000 supercomputer. The February 2002 issue of The Journal of Laser Applications features an article by the CLAIM team describing the results of their studies.


Access Online | Posted 3-12-2002