Open AccessReview of x-ray exposure and safety issues arising from ultra-short pulse laser material processing
Author(s) -
Herbert Legall,
Jörn Bonse,
Jörg Krüger
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
journal of radiological protection
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.471
H-Index - 46
eISSN - 1361-6498
pISSN - 0952-4746
DOI - 10.1088/1361-6498/abcb16
Subject(s) - laser , materials processing , radiation , machining , optics , hazardous waste , pulse (music) , radiation exposure , radiation protection , laser safety , materials science , radiological weapon , computer science , optoelectronics , physics , engineering , process engineering , nuclear medicine , medicine , detector , radiology , metallurgy , waste management
Laser processing with ultra-short laser pulses enables machining of materials with high accuracy and throughput. The development of novel laser technologies with laser pulse repetition rates up to the MHz range opened the way for industrial manufacturing processes. From a radiological point of view this evolution is important, because x-ray radiation can be generated as an unwanted side effect in laser material processing. Even if the emitted x-ray dose per pulse is comparably low, the x-ray dose can become hazardous to health at high laser repetition rates. Therefore, radiation protection must be considered. This article provides an overview on the generation and detection of x-rays in laser material processing, as well as on the handling of this radiation risk in the framework of radiological protection.