Laser-Engraver

Laser engraving is the most common kind of laser marking, and entails the use of laser beams to create indelible marks. The laser acts like a chisel in this case and blows away pieces of the subject material.

There are two types of laser engraving. Light engraving is where a relatively shallow trench is created, between five microns and 25 microns. The achievable depth depends on the material and on the power and dwell time of the laser. Deep engraving is used for making moulds, dies and stamps.

The achievable depth is dependent on how the material absorbs the laser, how much energy the laser has and how long the laser can dwell on the target. Deep engraving is often a slow process. Both types of engraving can be carried out on metals and some plastics.

Engraving can be used to make marks (e.g.  identification numbers) and logos and can also engrave complex images from graphics packages. Laser engraving has many advantages over older technologies such as machining. The main advantage is that there is no contact between machine parts, which means there is no tool wear. Lasers also offer greater precision and can engrave more complex patterns and images.

Fiber lasers were introduced fewer than five years ago and have shown promising results in laser engraving.  Compared with other types of lasers, they can provide better quality marking and deep-engraving, thanks to short-pulse duration, which minimises thermal effects and faster speed processing with high-peak power pulses.

SPI Lasers manufactures a G3 Pulsed Fiber Laser, which offers unrivalled peak power and has high frequency repetition and unprecedented control, with the ability to fine-tune operations to get the best results.  For laser engraving, this means reduced processing times, clearer marks and better mark depths.

When performing deep engraving as illustrated by the two examples in the next sections, higher pulse energies and higher peak powers are required to achieve greater ablation.  Deep engraving also needs lower frequencies for greater spot overlap, and this typically means slower speeds.

When using a G3 Pulsed Laser to laser-engrave silver, the laser operates from CW-500kHz, giving total control of peak power, while the pulse energy gives fine processing control.

For more information on the leading laser engraving equipment in the industry, go to Vytek.com today.  See their state-of-the-art line of products in the virtual showroom that’s got people talking.