| LASER | Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation. The acronym that is used to describe what a laser is.
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| Laser Beam | The cylinder of light that comes out of the laser head. This is what makes the mark on the selected material by vaporizing it.
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| Laser Classifications | The classification system that federal agencies use to rate lasers that determine the specific regulations required for owners and operators.
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| Lens | The laser beam focusing device. Lenses are specially made to best focus the beam of light for engraving purposes. Lenses need to be kept clean and periodically replaced.
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| Magnetic Table | A table that uses a series of magnets to hold parts in place for laser engraving.
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| Masking | The process of applying a low-adhesive transfer tape to a piece of material prior to laser engraving. This procedure is used to protect some materials from smoke and heat damage. It is also used for color filling. Paint can be applied over the mask. When the mask is removed, paint should be only in the desired areas.
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| Multiple Beams | Laser engraving equipment that has more than one laser or a beam splitter, thereby allowing for the running of two parts at a time.
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| Optics | A term that refers to the laser engraving system's mirrors and lenses that are used to direct and focus the laser beam.
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| Parallel printer cable | The type of cable used to connect the laser engraving system to the computer. |
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| Photo Engraving | The process of reproducing photographs onto a substrate using a laser.
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| Power | An adjustable setting on a laser engraving system. The higher the power, the faster and deeper the machine will engrave. |
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| PPI | Pulses per inch. This refers to how many times the laser will fire per linear inch. PPI's of less than 500 may result in non-continuous engraving. For cutting, PPI's of 150 or greater are usually recommended.
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| Raster engraving | A method of engraving that is made up of a series of back and forth passes: it works will well for large fill patterns. |
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| Resolution | Refers to the resolution of the engraving as dots per inch of engravable artwork. Resolutions of 300 - 600 dpi are recommended for most jobs, although laser engraving machines allow for settings of up to 1200 dpi. |
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| Reverse Engraving | The process of reversing the art so that what was previously black is now white, and what was white is now black. This is particularly popular for laser engraving on acrylic, glass, and mirrors. |
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| Rotary Attachment | A device that is used to rotate curved surfaces so that the laser beam still acts like it is engraving on a flat surface. Used for engraving on glasses, baseball bats, and other curved surfaces. |
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| Scanner | A piece of equipment designed to allow color and black and white artwork to be fed into a computer, cleaned up and resized. |
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| Speed | An adjustable setting on a laser engraving system. How fast one can engrave depends on the hardness of the material and required depth of engraving. |
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| Spot Size | The size of the laser beam. This can be adjusted by using different focal length lenses. Small spot sizes are used for detailed engraving while larger spot sizes are used for lower resolution engraving and cutting. |
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| Vacuum Work Support Table | A special table that uses air suction to hold parts in place when laser engraving. A very convenient device when cutting though a material. |
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| Vaporization | What the laser actually does to the material(s) it comes into contact with, thus producing the engraved “mark”. |
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| Vector Cutting | Combinations of x, y lines used to make up images to be laser cut. |
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| Vector Cutting Table | Tables sold as options that allow for the material to be cut through without the laser beam reflecting directly off the table top of the machine into the underside of the material. |
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| Vector Engraving | Combinations of x, y lines used to make up the images to be laser engraved. This type of engraving works best for borders and patterns with large blank areas in them. |
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| Wattage | A laser's output power. The greater the wattage, the faster and deeper a laser will engrave. Most of the popular laser engraving systems use a laser in the 25 watt to 100 watt range. |
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