Laser Types¶

There are many types of laser cutters and engravers that are compatible with LightBurn, let's talk about a few of them.

Diode Lasers¶

These devices typically share a lot of design with 3D printers, and are equipped with a small, fairly low-power diode laser module. These devices can usually cut thin pieces of wood or plastics, but are far more often used to engrave wood or plastic surfaces with a design.

CO₂ Lasers¶

These devices use a CO₂ beam to cut through thicker pieces of wood, plastics, or other organic materials. While there are "galvo" style CO₂ laser cutters, most of these are gantry style, where the beam is "moved" about the cutting area with a gantry system. Many of these lasers use a glass tube filled with gas to produce the beam, hence the name.

Galvo Lasers¶

These devices have a fixed galvo head responsible for actuating mirrors to move the beam, and usually have an external box responsible for generating a beam. This beam is produced by a CO₂ or Fiber source to engrave, color, or occasionally cut pieces of metal or glass.