How does laser cutting and etching work?
Laser cutters use a carbon dioxide laser beam to burn through (cut) or mark the surface (etch) of flat materials. The beam diameter is small and the positioning is very precise, so depending on the material used and the quality of the original artwork, lasers are capable of cutting and etching very fine materials.
The lasers are capable of etching a variety of bitmap images (BMP, JPEG, PNG, etc.) in “raster mode” where the laser moves back and forth over the image area to “paint in” the pixels. The laser uses vector files (SVG, AI, CAD, PDF, etc.) for cutting and etching intricate line-art images in “vector mode” where the vectors define a specific path for the beam to follow.
What materials can I use?
If cutting all the way through material, ensure your material is less than 3/8” (9.5mm) thick. If engraving your material, thickness will not matter quite as much, but still must be kept under 8.5” thick. The thinner, the better. All material must fit on the laser cutter’s build plate of 24”x 18”
Here are some of the most popular materials we are able to use:
- Natural wood
- Acrylic
- Glass – both curved and flat. It leaves a frosted appearance like a glass etching cream.
- Cardboard
- Cardstock
- Grip tape or sand paper
- Denim, leather and fabrics – most can be cut, thicker fabrics are well suited to receive engravings.
Always bring extra material. The I-Create Lab is not a production facility. Most projects require testing and refining. Things don’t always turn out the first try.
You are NOT allowed to cut the following:
- Any and all material containing Chlorine
- Any wood that has been painted or stained, otherwise non-natural
- Metals
- Vinyl and PVC
- Polycarbonate
- Fiberglass or printed circuit boards (anything resin based)
- Carbon fiber
- ABS or other types of plastics
For safety concerns, if any material is questionable or unknown to staff, we will not attempt to cut it for any reason. If you have any questions on material, please contact I-Create staff.
The I-Create Staff reserves the right to refuse any unprepared projects or material.