EBW or the electron beam welding is a fusion welding process in which a beam of electrons of high velocity is applied to the material being joined. The work piece starts to melt as the kinetic energy of the electron is transferred into heat and the impact of it is that the filler metal also melts to form part of the weld.

The electron beam welding is also done in vaccum to prevent dispersion of the electron beam. The process of electron beam welding was discovered by the German scientist Karl-Heinz Steigerwald, who has worked on the various electron beam applications and perceived and developed the first practical electron beam welding machine which began operation in 1958.