In this work, the interaction of a transversely excited atmospheric (TEA) CO2 laser with tungsten–titanium (W-Ti) alloy deposited on austenitic stainless steel is considered. The W-Ti alloy as a refractory material possesses very good physicochemical characteristics such as thermochemical stability and high melting temperature. Studying of interactions of different energetic particles or laser beams with W-Ti coatings has both application and fundamental importance.

The morphological features of the W-Ti coating, deposited on austenitic stainless steel AISI 316, induced by a TEA CO2 laser after multipulse cumulative laser action, have been considered. The laser pulses with tail (FWHM = 120 ns, tail = 2 μs) and free-tail pulses (FWHM = 80 ns) have been employed. Laser pulses used in the experiment had equal peak power density I = 120 MWcm−2. For the given peak power density, excessive surface changes on the coating were registered. From direct observation on a microscopic scale (OM, SEM), it can be concluded that W-Ti coatings show different behavior under laser irradiation with various temporal pulse shapes.