Application guide · Interactive tools
From a readable serial number to a recessed metal feature: match the material, the pulse and the process. Then find the right Precisometer system for your part.
Material
Absorption
Pulse
Energy & duration
Motion
Focus & overlap
01 / Define the result
Laser marking is the umbrella term. Engraving is one way of making a mark, using material removal. Start with the finished part’s acceptance criteria before comparing watts or choosing a wavelength.
Change the surface appearance
Annealing creates an oxide-based contrast on suitable metals. Selected polymers can change colour or foam. The objective is a readable identifier; a recess may be unnecessary.
Specify contrast + surface condition
Remove the substrate
Material removal creates a recessed feature. Define depth, roughness and edge quality as well as legibility. Deep engraving usually needs multiple passes and a measured removal rate.
Specify depth + cycle time
Reveal the layer underneath
Remove paint, an anodized layer or another coating selectively. The layer stack determines the useful processing window and whether the exposed surface meets the design intent.
Specify selectivity + substrate limit
Process background: industrial marking process overview.
02 / Interactive material selector
Select a material and a result to see a starting product and the questions that decide whether it fits.
A starting shortlist for discussion. The exact material grade and acceptance criteria decide the final configuration.
Your starting point
20 W · 1–400 kHz series range
Start with pulsed infrared for engraving or controlled surface contrast. For a smooth dark mark, evaluate an annealing process and check the finished surface against your corrosion and cleaning requirements.
Specify contrast and readability after the actual cleaning, wear or exposure cycle. Agree whether a colour change, texture change or shallow removal is acceptable.
A practical starting point for metal processing. MOPA adds pulse-duration flexibility; the allowed power, energy and repetition-rate combinations remain source-specific.
Often useful for absorbing nonmetals. A clear material in visible light may absorb strongly here. A desktop CO₂ marker should not be assumed suitable for engraving bare metal.
Useful for small features on selected plastics and glass. UV can favour photochemical changes, but “cold marking” does not guarantee zero heating or damage in every process.
Material response depends on composition: see the polymer absorption and additive overview and UV plastic and glass application note. The shortlist above is our engineering starting point, subject to sample validation.
03 / Interactive process lab
Increase repetition rate at fixed average power: each pulse carries less energy, but pulses land closer together at the same scan speed. Explore that tradeoff before specifying the source and scanner.
Pulse & scan lab
Illustrative pulsed-laser inputs, independently adjustable here. Actual sources cannot necessarily deliver every combination. This is not a CO₂ machine model.
Circles show 1/e² footprints on one scan line; bands show neighbouring hatch tracks. Brightness is schematic and does not predict a mark.
The 1/e² footprints overlap in both directions. Increasing overlap adds repeated exposure; whether that improves contrast or causes excess heating depends on the material.
Raster time is a lower bound for the selected passes: it excludes jumps, turnarounds, settling, loading and inspection. Fluence is incident peak fluence for a circular Gaussian beam, not absorbed dose or an ablation threshold.
E = P / f; Δx = v / f
Pulse energy uses average power during a steady pulse train at the workpiece. Pulse spacing uses constant scan speed.
F₀ = 8E / (πd²)
Gaussian peak fluence for full 1/e² diameter d. Convert E to joules and d to centimetres for J/cm².
Oₓ = 1 − Δx/d; Oᵧ = 1 − h/d
Geometric overlap with hatch spacing h. A negative overlap is reported as a gap relative to the diameter. Gaussian tails extend beyond the drawn circles.
t = A × N / (v × h)
Ideal raster time for filled area A and N passes, with lengths in consistent units. Repeated passes do not imply a known removal depth.
At the same energy, a shorter pulse raises characteristic peak power. It can change the balance of removal and heat flow. Compare pulse duration and energy at the intended repetition rate, not just the advertised maxima.
For fixed beam diameter and beam quality, a longer focal-length scan lens generally gives a larger spot. Ask for the spot size and distortion across the usable field, including its corners.
Raster exposure is only one part of takt time. Include scanner jumps, focus changes, rotary motion, loading, extraction delays and inspection. Use the calculator as a lower-bound comparison.
04 / Precisometer systems
Flexible pulses for metal marking
20 W · 1–400 kHz series range
Explore a fibre marking system with adjustable pulse duration and repetition rate for metal contrast, coating removal and engraving trials.
A starting point for nonmetals
20 W · RF metal tube · scan system
Explore a compact CO₂ marking and engraving platform for applications where the substrate absorbs mid-infrared light.
Fine marks on sensitive materials
355 nm common · pulsed configurations
Discuss UV sources and scanner integration for small features on polymers, glass, coatings and electronic parts.
The MC400 series range does not imply full rated power at every pulse setting. Request the configuration-specific operating envelope, scan field, enclosure and delivery availability for your installation country. UV entries describe a source and integration path; confirm the complete workstation scope.
Specify the source, beam conditioning, scan lens, positioning, focus control and monitoring together. We can help connect the optical and motion requirements.
05 / From sample to specification
Provide material grade, colour, additives, coatings, thickness and geometry. A generic label such as “plastic” or “aluminium” leaves too many possible interactions.
Provide artwork, minimum line or code-module size, depth tolerance and contrast target. Evaluate the mark after the actual cleaning and wear cycle; include the intended code reader and lighting.
Compare multiple coupons across energy, focus, speed and hatch settings. Inspect depth, burrs, cracking and appearance. Repeat on production lots to see how much variation the recipe tolerates.
Include working distance, fixture clearance, flatness or rotary travel, extraction, interlocked housing and integration interfaces. Assess the actual material’s emissions and the enclosure as part of the station design.
Talk to Precisometer
Tell us what you need to mark, how it should look and how fast it needs to run. Ask us to review your application and propose a suitable system.
Practical answers
Laser marking is the broader term for producing a visible identifier on a surface. Engraving is a marking process that removes substrate material to create a recess. Annealing and some colour-change processes create contrast with little or no intentional material removal.
Use the material and required result to make the first shortlist. Pulsed infrared fibre is a common starting point for metals, CO₂ for wood, paper and acrylic, and pulsed UV for fine marks on selected plastics and glass. Test the exact grade, coating and geometry before choosing a system.
No. Adjustable pulse duration and repetition rate give more variables to optimise, but absorption, focus, scan settings and the permitted operating envelope still determine the result. Ask for a demonstrated process window on your part.
It may remove material over repeated passes, but power alone cannot establish the achievable depth, surface quality or cycle time. Specify those three requirements and request a measured sample result before selecting the 20 W platform.
No. It calculates incident pulse energy, Gaussian peak fluence, geometric overlap and ideal raster time. It does not model absorption, ablation thresholds, heat accumulation, scanner delays or a particular laser’s allowed settings. Depth and material response require measurement.
Include the exact material and layer stack, mark artwork and dimensions, smallest feature, desired contrast or depth, production rate, part geometry, installation country and integration requirements. Include acceptance criteria for cleaning, wear and code readability where relevant.
Before you specify
Explore the laser specifications, positioning and optomechanics that shape a repeatable processing station.
PhotonicsLinewidth, spectral width, RIN, M², and coherence length answer five different questions. Translate each into the units your experiment is designed in — and learn which ones not to pay for.
Open guide
Motion controlWhy load capacity is really a moment specification, why Abbe error usually beats the quoted accuracy, why a rotary encoder on the motor is not position feedback, and when top speed is unreachable by geometry.
Open guide Opto-mechanicsVibration, thermal drift and mechanical integration are one problem. Budget the motion at the sample, then specify the table, the isolation, the mounts and the beam height that budget asks for.
Open guide