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Laser cutting is a technology that uses light amplification by stimulation of emitted radiation or, a laser, to vector or raster stock material. The material removal required to obtain a cut or a raster is obtained by a process called thermal separation. In industry, and depending on the materials involved, the lasers used in the laser cutting process greatly range in power. At the uOttawa Makerspace, depending on the machine, the lasers may output either 50 or 60 watts of ultraviolet light, which can be used to cut through many woods, plastics, and other materials of lesser density. The principle is fairly simple: the laser generated by the machine is reflected to a focusing head, which in turn focuses the power contained in the ultraviolet beam to a small point on the stock, inducing the desired thermal separation. The power of the laser as well as the focusing head path is then adjusted by software to obtain one of two modes of cut: rastering and vectoring.

Laser cutting is a technology that uses light amplification by stimulation of emitted radiation or, a laser, to vector or raster stock material. The material removal required to obtain a cut or a raster is obtained by a process called thermal separation. In industry, and depending on the materials involved, the lasers used in the laser cutting process greatly range in power. At the uOttawa Makerspace, depending on the machine, the lasers may output either 50 or 60 watts of ultraviolet light, which can be used to cut through many woods, plastics, and other materials of lesser density. The principle is fairly simple: the laser generated by the machine is reflected to a focusing head, which in turn focuses the power contained in the ultraviolet beam to a small point on the stock, inducing the desired thermal separation. The power of the laser as well as the focusing head path is then adjusted by software to obtain one of two modes of cut: rastering and vectoring.

==How Laser Cutting Works==

==How does Laser Cutting Work?==

It is important to understand that the laser from a laser cutter does not directly cut material, and that it works by leveraging the concepts of optic bending and focusing to orient and focus the laser’s power to a single point in or on the stock material. The focal length of the lens in the machine’s focusing head assembly is therefore an important variable to take into consideration for lasering, and as an operator, the distance of the focusing lens to the stock material must be taken into account if you wish to obtain good results. Always remember to focus your laser. Thankfully, laser cutting machines usually come with a focusing tool of sorts to assist operators with the setup of a lasering job.

It is important to understand that the laser from a laser cutter does not directly cut material, and that it works by leveraging the concepts of optic bending and focusing to orient and focus the laser’s power to a single point in or on the stock material. The focal length of the lens in the machine’s focusing head assembly is therefore an important variable to take into consideration for lasering, and as an operator, the distance of the focusing lens to the stock material must be taken into account if you wish to obtain good results. Always remember to focus your laser. Thankfully, laser cutting machines usually come with a focusing tool of sorts to assist operators with the setup of a lasering job.