Synrad, Inc.
Synrad, Inc.
4600 Campus Place
Mukilteo, WA 98275-4862
USA
Phone:
(425) 349-3500
Website : www.synrad.com
CO2 LASER APPLICATIONS ON
CERAMICS
 Marking Porcelain
This material provides a
highly permanent
contrasting mark, with
some engraving. This
component is used for
electrical lamp plugs.
Fenix, 25W, 5"/s..
Marking
Aluminum Nitride
Aluminum Nitride
marked using Synrad’s
Fenix.
 Using Synrad’s 25W
Fenix Laser Marker and
80mm lens, this Polished
Aluminum Nitride
(Ceramic) sample was
marked with 1mm high
text characters at 2.5
inches per second in a
cycle time of 0.2 seconds.
Marking Clear Ceramic
Marking high temperature clear
ceramic using a 10W laser.
Heat resistant to 1400° F, the
clear ceramic material in the
photo is used for windows in
high temperature ovens and
furnaces.
The ceramic was marked with a
0.125" high human readable
lot code and a 2D Data Matrix
code using a 10W Synrad CO2
laser, with a cycle time of 3
seconds.
Marking polished
ceramic surface mounts
 This shuttle was marked
on a surface mount
 The mark was made with
a 69mm lens and 13
watts of laser power.
 A speed of 15'"/s was
achieved, with high
resolution.
 This application calls for
high marking speeds, as
the surface mount
material must be marked
without overheating the
part
Marking Ceramic
and Phenolic Capacitors
 The flexible nature of
laser marking is ideal for
placing a printed mark
onto very small, varyingly
sized capacitors, with
changing text.
 Both ceramic and
phenolic capacitors
produce an excellent
contrasting mark.
Marking
Ceramic Components
 The electronics industry
uses miniature surfacemount components
extensively in the
manufacture of circuit
boards.
 This large (2.5 mm x 3
mm) ceramic capacitor
was marked using an FHSeries marking head
equipped with an 80 mm
lens.
Drilling Ceramic
 75-micron holes
drilled in 0.015"
ceramic (alumina)
using a
Synrad Evolution
240.
Cutting Ceramic
 This 0.014" diameter
hole was trepanned
through a sheet of
0.005"-thick
ceramic.
Cutting ceramic
 0.025” thick
ceramic, cut with a
Synrad 200 watt
laser, at 15ipm
Scribing Micro-Channels
in PMMA
 This 100-micron
wide channel was
made using only 6W
of power on a sheet
of super-cooled
PMMA.
 Enlarged view of the
scribed channel
Marking Surface Mount Capacitors
 Marked with a Synrad
10-watt laser and FHSeries “Index”
Marking Head at 15”/
sec (Actual size
~2mm x 1 .5mm)
Marking Polyimide
 Marked with the FH
"Index" marking head
and Synrad laser, using
5 watts at 30"/ second.
The cutting of polyimide
material for flex circuits
and other electrical
applications is a highly
specialized area, with
lasers of wavelengths in
the 9.3-9.4 micron range
commonly used in their
processing.
Marking PCB on its side
 Marked with the FH
"Index" marking head
and 10 watt laser using
7 watts at 15"/second.
 The available space on
small PCBs for
marking part numbers or
date codes is constantly
decreasing - one of the
reasons for the increased
use of Data Matrix codes
Marking LPI Solder Masks
 LPI (Liquid photo-image able)
solder masks are widely used
on circuit boards as they offer
high resolution, excellent
electrical properties and
compatibility with surface
mount technology.
 This LPI solder mask was
marked using a Synrad CO2
laser and FH Series marking
head without exposing the
electrical traces, or otherwise
damaging the board.
Marking IC Chips
 Marked with
Synrad's FH "Index"
marking head and a
10-watt laser at 45"
per second
Marking Graphite
 Marked with a Synrad 50W
laser at 2.5"/s
 Graphite’s ability to absorb
laser energy is well known
among CO2 laser users, as
this material can be used as a
fairly effective beam stop.
 While this high-threshold
material does require at least
50 watts of power to mark,
laser marking on graphite
results in well-defined, dark
contrasting marks
Marking
Electronic Chips
 Incredibly small
readable text
created with Synrad
10W laser
Marking Data
Matrix Codes on PCB
 This 0.08" sq.
(~2mm. sq.), 26character code was
marked with a 10watt Synrad laser
and FH "Index"
Marking Head at 19"
per second.
Marking Data Matrix
Codes on Glass-filled Nylon
 Marked with an FH
"Index" marking head
and 25-watt laser, using
12 watts of power at
40"/ second.
 This 22 character code
was marked onto an
automotive part in 0.4s.
The 0.4" square code is
readable with a hand held
scanner.
Marking Codes on PCB
 2 watts of laser power were
used. The codes shown are
(from top left):
 0.04" sq. Data Matrix code,
marked with Synrad's Spot tool
0.1725" sq. Data Matrix code,
raster-filled, cycle time 0.54
seconds
 0.7180 x 0.09" pdf 417 code,
cycle time 1.01 seconds
0.8 x 0.09" Code 128, cycle
time 1.64 seconds
 All four codes were marked in
5 seconds
Marking
Chewing Gum Wrappers
 In this application, foil
chewing gum
wrappers were
marked for tracking,
quality, and inspection
purposes using a
Synrad 25W CO2
laser and FH-Series
marking head
equipped with a
125mm focusing lens
Marking Brake Pads
 This brake pad can be
marked on either side.
 While an engraved mark
can be produced on the
actual contact side of the
pad, a great contrasting
mark can be made on the
painted side (shown in
the photograph above) at
very high speed.
 Both the text and code
were marked in less than
2 seconds.
Marking
2D Codes on FR4
 A 2D Data Matrix code was marked on a sample FR4
circuit board
 A second sample, containing twelve 0.060” high
alphanumeric characters, was marked using 12 W at
25 IPS in a time of 0.22 seconds.
Marking 2D
Bar Codes on PCBs
 This 2-D bar code reads
"Synrad CO2 Laser
marking!"
 Information-dense 2D
codes can be quickly and
easily marked directly
onto the base material of
PCBs using a low power
sealed CO2 laser and
galvo’ based marking
head
Cutting Sandpaper
 Cutting 0.04” aluminum
oxide paper with 125 watts at
125”/ minute.
The thickness and abrasive
nature of the aluminum oxide
is a challenge for mechanical
cutters, often resulting in tool
wear and deformation of the
paper.
 The laser cuts the sandpaper
with no visible signs of thermal
damage, and, as in this
example, offers the end-users
the flexibility to create custom
shapes.
Cutting PCB
 Side view of PCB
scribed using low
power Synrad CO2
Lasers.
 The 0.05” Printed Circuit
Board (PCB) shown on
the left was cut at 140
inches per minute with a
Synrad 50W laser.
Cutting Non-Slip Mats
 Close up of laser cut
non-slip flooring.
 Cutting was done
with a 50-watt
Synrad laser and
10psi nitrogen
assist at a speed of
2.75" per second.
Cutting Gaskets
with a marking head
 This application may
also be accomplished
using the Fenix Laser
Marker.
 The figure shows
8.5" x 7" gasket, cut
with 25 watts of
power at 2" per
second
Cutting cell phone
keypads
 Cut conditions were
23W, 1.8"/s, 200mm
lens
The as-received cellphone keypad
required the individual
keys to be de-gated.
The cutting was
achieved using the
Digital Marking Head.
Cutting CDs
 The CD material cuts
very well with slight
edge charring, with no
discoloration to its
surface or underside.
 25 watts, 70" per
minute
SYNRAD APPLICATION – GLASS
QUARTZ AND STONE
Stripping Optical Fiber
 For many material
removal processes, such
as fiber optic stripping,
low power CO2 lasers
can be an excellent tool.
 The laser beam can be
positioned with high
accuracy and power
delivered with precise
control to remove
unwanted materials.
"Spot" Marking Data
Matrix Codes on CRT Glass
 WinMark Pro's Spot
Marking Style was
used to create this
0.35"sq 2D code on
CRT glass. The mark
had a cycle time of 2.6
seconds
 Three methods of
marking glass using
WinMark Pro software:
Top: Circle Filled
Middle: Spot Marking
Style
Bottom: Raster Fill
Sealing
Borosilicate Glass Tubes
 This 0.075"diameter
borosilicate glass
pipette was sealed
using 10W of CO2
laser power.
Profile Cutting of Quartz
 The picture above
shows part of an
intricate pattern cut
out of 0.03"-thick
quartz, demonstrating
the laser's
effectiveness in fine
cutting operations
Marking Test Tubes
 A readable 2D code
created on Pyrex
using a Synrad 10W
laser
Marking Sapphire
 White sapphire
marked using a low
power Synrad CO2
lasers
Marking Quartz
 This piece of quartz
was marked using
the FH Marking head
and only 5 watts of
power at 15" per
second. Actual
character height is
0.04".
Marking Pyrex Glass
 Marked with Fenix
Laser Marker (25W)
at 15”/s.
 Marked with Fenix
Laser Marker (8W) at
15”/s.
Engraving Marble/ Granite
 Marked with FH "Index"
marking head using 18 watts
at 15"/ second.

Marking plaques and
presentation pieces made from
marble, granite and similar
substances can be achieved in
various ways.
 Surface marking, with very little
penetration into the material, is
fairly straightforward, generally
requiring less than 25 watts of
power
Marking Glass Diodes
 Marked with 3 watts of
power at 15"/second.
 0.03"-high characters
were marked on this
diode using just 3 watts of
laser power.
 The material is painted
glass, and the highlycontrasting mark was
produced by removing
the paint, leaving the
glass unaffected
Marking Glass
 This intricate image can
be marked using a
Synrad 25W laser!
 These results were
achieved using 20W of
power, a 125mm lens at a
speed of 45 inches per
minute.
 The image was marked
with a resolution of
425dpi.
Laser Marking Glass to Resemble
Sand Blasting
 CO2 lasers mark glass by
fracturing the surface of
the material.
 In this case , the glass
was fractured to within 23 thousandths of the
surface, resulting in a
very smooth finish.
 This technique can be
used to produce text,
Data Matrix™ codes, and
readable bar codes
Marking
Decorative Glass
 Marked with 15 watts of
power at 100"/second.
 In this application, the
surface staining or
coating on glass was
easily ablated away,
revealing a pattern.
 The high speed etching
on the thin coating has no
effect on the glass
beneath it.
Marking
Bar codes on Glass
 Readable codes were
marked on this 1/8"thick automotive glass
 The 6 character Code
128 barcode was
marked with a cycle
time of 1.7 seconds.
Marking Bar Codes in Glass
 128 Code, marked with
an FH-Series Marking
Head and 25W Synrad
laser. Marking speed
was 35" per second.
 Magnified view of a code
made up of linear spots
Marking Auto Glass
 Readable codes can
be made on tinted
glass using a 10W
laser
Laser "Blasting" Glass
 A sandblasted look
can be created on
glass using a
Synrad laser and FH
Marking Head.
Cutting Float Glass
 Cut with a 60-2, 200
watt laser.
 The unique ability to
cut out profile
shapes with no
mechanical force
makes this
application
possible.
Cutting Optical Fiber
 CO2 laser radiation is readily
absorbed by glass, which
makes these lasers ideal for
cutting and machining of
optical fibers, or as a heat
source for fiber splicing
 In this case, single-mode
telecommunication fibers were
cut with a 25-watt laser at a
speed of 6" per second with 5
passes (0.3 second cycle
time), using an 80mm focal
length lens
CO2 LASER APPLICATIONS IN METALS
 Scribing
aluminum film
 This application
required aluminum
film to be sectioned.
The 2 microns thick
film was scribed
using only 9 watts
of laser power, at a
speed of 2000ipm
Rust-Proof Marking Steel
 Metal marking using a
Synrad FH Series Marking
Head.
 Synrad lasers are used in a
variety of industrial
applications to mark metals
including mild steel, 300 & 400
series stainless, Inconel,
nickel, titanium, tool steel, and
titanium nitride.
 In addition to easily marking
these metals, the CO2 laser
creates a permanent and
durable mark.
Marking 0.025"-thick wire
 Tungsten Carbide wire,
marked with 98W, 1"/s
69mm lens.
 This application shows off
the laser’s ability to
create high quality marks
on even the tiniest of
surfaces – marking
alphanumeric on 0.025"thick wire!
 The resulting character
height of this application
is 0.018", with a line width
of 0.0026".
Marking Steel
Automotive Parts
 These 0.125" high
characters were
marked on a steel
automotive part
using 60W.
Marking Stainless Steel
 Stainless Steel disk
marked using a
125W Synrad Laser.
Marking Solar Panels
 Marked with a Synrad 48-2
CO2 laser with 20 watts of
power at 15"/ second.
 The underside surface of a
solar panel is made of
powdered aluminum.
 While regular aluminum cannot
be marked with a sealed CO2
laser, the powdered form can
be easily marked with just 20
watts of power
Marking Saw Blades
 The readable
contrasting marks on
the saw blades were
created using a
Synrad 125W laser at
a speed of 4.5 inches
per second with a
resolution of 425 dpi.
Marking Plated Steel
 Permanent marks
created on an
automotive door
latch using CO2
lasers
Marking Painted Metal
 A gun barrel slide
marked using a low
power Synrad CO2
laser.
Marking
Painted Aluminum
 Logos and text,
marked on painted
aluminum using a
25W laser.
Metal Marking with the
Fenix Laser Marker
 Bead blasted stainless
steel 24W, 0.125"/s
 Cast stainless steel
25W, 10"/s readable 2-D
Bar Code
Metal marking
with a 50 watt CO2 laser
 Both titanium and
stainless steels can
be marked with as
little as 50 watts of
CO2 laser power
Marking Metal around a circumference
 1”-diameter metal
tube, marked with a
Synrad 100-watt
sealed CO2 laser and
FH-Series “Index”
Marking Head at 2”
per second
Marking
Lithography Frames
 Contrasting marks
were produced on
this anodized
aluminum frame
with a 25W laser.
Marking
Lacquered Aluminum
 Contrasting marks
were created on a
lacquered aluminum
cap.
CUTTING CROMIUM STEEL
CUTTING BRONZE MESH
CUTTING COATED ALUMINIUM
CUTTING MILD STEEL
CUTTING NICKEL
CUTTING NICKEL SCREEN
CUTTING SAND PAPER
CUTTING STAINLESS STEEL
CUTTING STAINSTEEL TUBING
DRILLING STEEL
CO2 LASER APPLICATIONS FOR
PAPER AND WOOD PROCESSING
Marking, Kiss-Cutting,
and Perforating Labels
 This laser-markable
label material,
developed by 3M for
Nd:YAG laser
applications, is
easily marked, kiss
cut, and perforated
using a Synrad 10W
CO2 laser and an FH
Series marking
head.
Marking Fast Codes
on Inked Paper
 Using a Synrad 25W
FH Marking System,
these codes were
marked at 250" per
second
Marking Codes on Boxes
 Laser ablating an
inked layer on
boxes is a popular
method of marking
date codes in the
packaging industry.
Engraving Wood
 A handgrip was
engraved on
hardwood using a
Synrad laser and FH
Marking head
Cutting Particle Board
Using a 240W Synrad CO2 laser we were able to cut
this particle board at a speed of 150 inches per minute
Cutting Paperboard
 This paperboard cutting
application was
processed using both
100W and 240W sealed
CO2 lasers. Although
the paperboard is 0.25"
thick, the beam was
focused by a lens
proving a 0.004" spot
size and a 0.07" depth
of focus.
Cutting
Corrugated Paper
 A 21-pound corrugated
sample (0.375” high
flutes on 3/4" inch
centers) was cut using
109W at a speed of 360
IPM.
 The black 33-pound
stock, with 0.5” high
flutes on one-inch
centers, was cut using
142W of laser power
Cutting Carbon Fiber
 Carbon fiber cut
using an EVO200
Synrad laser.
Wire Stripping
 Because many
materials used to
fabricate wires, such
as copper and
aluminum, are
reflective to the CO2
wavelength, lasers
are an excellent
source for wire
stripping.
CO2 LASER APPLICATIONS IN
PLASTIC PROCESSING
Perforating holes in
plastic/ fabric sheet
 0.025" diameter
holes made with
15W at 1200ipm
Marking
Thermoset Polyester
 Used in many
electrical housings
and moldings, this
material marks easily
with a low power CO2
laser.
Fenix, 2.5 watts, 10"
per second
Marking
Silicon Carbide
 Marked with the FH
"Index" head, 25
watts of power at 1"
/ second.
Marking PVC Coated Wire
 Marked using a
Synrad CO2 laser and
FH marking head.
 Using 10W of power, a
Synrad CO2 laser and FH
marking head produced a
nicely contrasting mark
on PVC coated 18 AWG
wire with a character size
approximately 0.039"
(1mm) high
Marking
PVC Coated Bottles
 Contrasting marks
resulted from laser
marking this PVC
coated bottle with a
10W laser.
Marking PVC Wire
 Excellent marks
achieved with Fenix,
using 1W at 15"/s on
brown (top) and
blue (bottom) PVC
wire
Marking PVC Tubing
 This PVC medical
device was marked
using a 25W laser
and FH-Series
marking head. The
0.1"-high text was
marked in a cycle
time of 0.9 seconds
Marking PVC Cards
 These codes were
marked using a
Fenix marking
system.
Marking Nylon
 Although this material
does not produce a
highly contrasting
mark, it engraves with
good readability on
both light and dark
base material colors
 Fenix, 7W,10" per
second
Marking IV Bags
 Polyvinyl chloride
medical storage
bags,
marked with a 10W
Synrad CO2 laser.
 The marks penetrate
only 1.3% of the
total material
thickness
Marking IV Bags
 The entire mark of 400+
characters took 11.2
sec.
This close-up view of a
letter "t" shows
individual scan lines at a
resolution optimized for
speed.
Marking Data Matrix
Codes on Polycarbonate
 Marked with the FH
"Index" marking
head and Synrad
laser, using 8 watts
of power at 15"/
second
Marking Cosmetic Containers
 Laser marked
Anodized Aluminum
Lid
 Laser marked PVC.
Marking Coated Plastic
 Barcodes and
human-readable text
marked using 10W
of power
Marking Bakelite
 Marked with the
Fenix Laser Marker:
1 watt of power was
used, at a speed of
25" per second.
Engraving Plastic
 Engraving codes
using only 10W of
power
Engraving Delrin
 Engraved marks in
Delrin were made
using 25W of laser
power
Drilling Polyurethane
 0.006" holes drilled
in 0.003"
polyurethane sheet
using a Synrad 25W
laser and 2.5"
positive meniscus
lens providing a
spot size of 0.004" .

Drilling Plastic Nozzles
 250 & 100 micron
hole sizes drilled with
a Synrad 48-2 CO2
laser with 20 watts of
power
Degating Plastic Parts
 This acrylic part was
degated on the left
side of the part.
Marking
Day & Night Displays
 Marked with 2 watts of
power at 20" per
second
 Used for displays where
the mark will be read
under varying light
conditions, such as
automotive displays, hi-fi
systems, and telephones,
Cutting Urethane Bushings
 Cutting urethane
using a 240W
Synrad laser.
 The 2.5 inch thick
urethane bushing
shown above was cut
in nine seconds while
being rotated
underneath a 240
watt CO2 laser beam
Cutting Synthetic Woven Fabric
Synthetic fabric, cut with 25 watts of laser power at
200" per minute.
Cutting Synthetic Filters
 Laser processing of
both of these filter
elements resulted in
clean cuts with
sealed edges.
Cutting 0.6"-thick
Polyester Rope
 Cut with 20 watts at
4"/minute
Cutting Plastic Mesh
 Laser cutting of this
plastic mesh
resulted in
clean, sealed edges
A close-up view
of the fabric edge
quality.
Cutting Plastic Mesh
 Synrad CO2 lasers
produce smooth
edges when cutting
plastic mesh.
Cutting
Kevlar Reinforced Urethane
 The Kevlar
reinforced Urethane
timing belt was cut
at a speed of 680
inches per minute.
Cutting Fabric Housing
 CO2 laser used to
cut the outer fabric
housing from a
cable.
Cutting Acrylic
 ¼" thick acrylic cut
at 50ipm with 100W
Cutting
1.125"-Thick Acrylic
 Clear smooth edges
on thick acrylic
resulted from the
laser cutting
process
Cutting and Marking Acrylic Signs
This acrylic advertising sign was cut and marked using
a Synrad 48-2 25W CO2 laser
"Engraving"
Polyester Fleece
 Polyester fleece,
“engraved” with a
Synrad 10W laser
and FH-Series “Index”
Marking Head
Cutting Plastic Containers
with a Marking Head
 0.03”-thick plastic
cut with a 100W
laser at 15”/s.
CO2 LASER PROCESSING RUBBER
AND FOAM
Marking Tires
 Crisp readable
marks created on
rubber tires with a
Synrad laser
Marking Rubber Hose
 Marked with Fenix
Laser Marker, 5
watts at 10" per
second
Marking 2D Data
Matrix Codes in Rubber
 This contrasting mark was
achieved with ~5 watts at a
speed of 15”/sec.

 Engraved mark made with
~15W at 10”/sec
Drilling Rubber Seals
 A rubber seal from a
car door was drilled
using a 25W Synrad
sealed CO2 laser
Cutting
Rubber-Coated Aluminum
 A test shape was
"kiss-cut" out of this
rubber material.
Cutting foam boards for
tool set placement
 1" thick foam, 125W,
65ipm
Cutting Foam Blocks
 Synrad lasers
produced smooth
edges on this foam
block
Cutting Foam
 Laser cutting results
in no discoloration,
distortion or melting
Cutting Foam
 Cut with a Synrad
200 watt laser at a
speed of 2"/minute.