The main objective of this research is to study the laser beam welding of stainless steels. During experimentation, a 1.1kW CW Nd: YAG laser is used to weld similar and dissimilar stainless steels in overlap and fillet joint configurations respectively. Various process parameters and their interactions effects on weld geometry and its mechanical properties are examined. Effects of energy density and line energy on the weld bead characteristics are investigated to understand certain energy dependent welding phenomena. Formation of solidification microstructures and the distribution pattern of...