Patent ID: 7133187

Claim:
A method for enhancing performance of an AOM suited for positioning along a beam path between a laser and a workpiece, the AOM having a beam entrance surface, a beam exit surface, and a first transducer that is positioned on a first transducer surface of the AOM, the first transducer surface being in a first plane that is transverse to the beam entrance surface, comprising: generating a laser beam along a beam path that impinges a workpiece at a nominal beam position; propagating the laser beam through the AOM positioned along the beam path; controlling a first frequency of a first RF signal applied to the first transducer that modulates within a first transducer modulation zone that traverses the beam path to affect a deflection angle of the beam path along a first workpiece axis with respect to a surface of the workpiece; controlling a second frequency of a second RF signal applied to a second transducer positioned on a second transducer surface of the AOM, the second transducer surface being in a second plane that is transverse to the beam entrance surface and that is generally parallel or coplanar with the first transducer surface, and the second transducer modulating in a second transducer modulation zone that traverses the beam path to affect the deflection angle of the beam path along the first workpiece axis; and coordinating the first and second RF signals to deflect the laser beam from the nominal beam position on the workpiece to impinge the workpiece at a desired beam position resulting from a cooperative deflection angle of the beam path imparted by the first and second RF signals.