Laser engraving
practice of using lasers to engrave an object
Laser engraving is the practice of using lasers to engrave an object. The engraving process renders a design by physically cutting into the object to remove material. The technique does not involve the use of inks or tool bits that contact the engraving surface and wear out, giving it an advantage over alternative marking technologies, where inks or bit heads have to be replaced regularly.
That process is distinct from laser marking, which involves using a laser to mark an object via any of a variety of methods, including color change due to chemical alteration, charring, foaming, melting, ablation, and more. Laser marking is a common method for applying variable dates, lot and batch codes, 2D codes, alphanumeric text, and graphics to products and packaging during production. However, the term laser marking is also used as a generic term covering a broad spectrum of surfacing techniques including printing, hot-branding, and laser bonding. The machines for laser engraving and laser marking are sometimes the same, so the two terms are sometimes confused by those without relevant expertise.
The impact of laser marking has been more pronounced for specially designed "laserable" materials and also for some paints. These include laser-sensitive polymers and novel metal alloys.
Laser engraving mechanisms
Laser engraving is the process of selectively removing microscopic layers of material, thus creating visible marks on the treated surface.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Laser engraving” as practice of using lasers to engrave an object. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
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Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 14, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q902936. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference.
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This entry incorporates text from “Laser engraving” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.