Abstract: Laser peen forming has been carried out on 0.075mm thick steel samples, using relatively low power Nd:YAG lasers at 1064nm, 532nm and 355nm wavelengths. These experiments have been carried out without the usually used tamping layer associated with laser peen forming, which would help to confine the shock wave and direct more of the energy produced by it into the material. The samples had an added graphite layer which was used to aid in the generation of plasma so that shock waves could be formed. The process was found to produce a bend angle up to ~ 20 degrees, depending upon the amount of passes and laser parameters used. Testing has also been carried out to see the effect of changing the ablative layer, to see effect that the process has on the surface of the material, this is being analysed using Veeco and AFM technology. The process has also been investigated to see if it was possible to re-form a laser peen form sample in the opposite direction, which was proved to be the case. The results from these experiments have been compared to samples formed using continuous wave thermal forming, which used similar power settings as used in the laser peen forming samples. The results showed that laser peen forming could take place with a pulsed Nd:YAG laser, which uses less energy than a laser used for thermal forming, and that the laser peen formed samples do not have evidence of heat affected zones or changes to the bulk material, both seen with laser thermal forming. This indicates that the laser peen forming process is largely athermal.