Popsicle sticks... truly the universal crafting tool!

https://toobnix.org/w/hBLk26wuicW4bMNXujCJn6

First try at making a stamp with the CO2 Laser. Luckily Lightburn has a very large community.

- Multiple passes is key for air assist to clear out debris.
- The speed setting is more important than power (especially with a 55w).

#co2laser #lasercutting #laserengraving

Calibrated the CO2 laser and got some quick cuts in. The Omtech Polar Lite 55w handles everything so far and is very accurate with fine details.

Next is making custom stamps and test cutting thicker acrylic. I have some 20mm cast acrylic to play with also for the stamp handles.

#lasercutting #laserengraving #co2laser

Best methods to prolong your CO2 laser tube life with these 8 simple tips...
https://thinklaser.com/news/5-glass-co2-laser-tubes-tips/

#CO2Laser #LaserTube #LaserMaintenance #ThinkLaser

Have you all seen our Halloween tumblers?? These are SELLING so fast right now! Order yours today for $25.00!

#co2laser #customengraving #laserengraving #WattzWebDesignAndMarketing #localengraver #customengrave #engrave #thunderlaser

Illuminating Origami Is Just Around The Corner

Pop-up greeting cards are about to get a whole lot more interesting. Researchers at Seoul National University in Korea have created glowing 3D objects with a series of prototypes that fold thin QLED (Quantum Dot LED) sheets like origami. They used a CO2 laser to etch "fold lines" in the QLED so the sheets could be formed into 3D shapes. The bends are actually rounded, but at 5μm they appear to be sharp corners and the panels continue to illuminate across the fold lines for at least 500 folds. Some glow in solid colors, while others use smaller addressable areas to create animated matrix displays of patterns and letterforms. See the short video after the break, read the Physics World article or to see all the prototypes and dig into details of the full research paper in Nature (freed from the paywall by SharedIt).

We're not sure how soon this technique can be duplicated in our home labs, but we can't wait to fold up our own 3D lights and matrices. Until then, check out some glowing origami you can make right now from [Charlyn Gonda] at Remoticon 2020 and earlier that year and this amazing origami lamp.

#art #news #science #co2laser #laseretch #origami #qled #research #southkorea #university

Water is the Secret Ingredient When Laser Cutting Ceramics to Make Circuits

[Ben Krasnow] over at Applied Science was experimenting with cutting inexpensive ceramic sheets with his cheap CO2 laser cutter when he found that (just as expected) the thermal shock of the CO2 beam would cause cracking and breaking of the workpiece. After much experimentation, he stumbled upon a simple solution: submersion under a thin layer of water was sufficient to remove excess heat, keeping thermal shock at bay, and eventually cutting the material. Some prior art was uncovered, which we believe is this PHD thesis (PDF) from Manchester University in the UK. This is a great read for anyone wanting to dig into this technique a little deeper.

The CO2 laser cutter is a very versatile tool, capable of cutting and etching a wide range of materials, many of natural origin, such as cardboard, leather and wood, as well as certain plastics and other synthetic materials. But, there are also materials that are generally a no-go, such as metals, ceramics and anything that does not absorb the laser wavelength adequately or is too reflective, so having another string in one's bow is a good thing. After all, not everyone has access to a fibre laser.

After dispensing with the problem of how to cut ceramic, it got even more interesting. He proceeded to deposit conductive traces sufficiently robust to solder to. A mask was made from vinyl sheet and a squeegee used to deposit a thick layer of silver and glass particles 1 um or less in size. This was then sintered in a small kiln, which was controlled with a Raspberry Pi running PicoFlow, and after a little bit of scrubbing, the surface resistance was a very usable 2 mΩ/square. Holes cut with the laser, together with some silver material being pushed through with the squeegee formed through holes with no additional effort. That's pretty neat!

Some solder paste and parts were added to the demo board, and with an added flare for no real reason other than he could, reflowed by simply applying power direct to the board. A heater trace had been applied to the bottom surface, rendering the board capable of self-reflowing. Now that is cool!

Thanks [Baldpower] for the tip!

#laserhacks #toolhacks #ceramicpcb #co2laser #picoflow #raspberrypi #reflowsoldering