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Acrylic is a popular material that looks like glass but is stronger and lighter. You see it everywhere, in signs, decorations, and many other things. 

If you have tried to cut clear acrylic with a diode laser, you might have found that it doesn’t work. Diode lasers are not able to cut clear acrylic. 

Why Cutting Clear Acrylic with a Diode Laser is Impossible?

To know why it’s impossible to cut clear acrylic with a diode laser, you need to understand how lasers interact with materials.

For a laser to engrave or cut a material, the material needs to absorb the laser’s light energy. This energy is what vaporizes the material, allowing it to be cut.

However, diode lasers produce light at a wavelength of 450nm, which cannot be absorbed by clear acrylic and other transparent materials. Instead, diode laser light passes through the clear acrylic, leaving it intact.

In contrast, dark materials absorb the light of diode laser cutters much more readily. This is why diode lasers can still cut some dark and opaque acrylic materials.

A diode laser can also cut acrylic; however, it is crucial to understand the limitations related to acrylic colours.

Generally, diode laser cutters can cut some dark opaque acrylic.

Specifically, with a blue-light diode laser, engraving or cutting blue acrylic is not possible, as the material will not absorb the laser beam due to the matching color. Additionally, diode lasers are incapable of engraving or cutting clear acrylic.

Why Laser Cut Acrylic?

Acrylic, also known as plexiglass, is a visually captivating material and finds use in a diverse array of products.

Laser cutting is a sought-after acrylic cutting option due to the clean and smooth cuts produced. Laser cutters also provide frosted etching that creates beautiful contrast on clear acrylic when laser engraved.

How Laser Cutting Acrylic Works?

Laser cutters focus a powerful laser beam, guided by the design file, on the surface of acrylic. This rapidly vaporizes the material along the designated path, turning the acrylic sheet into the desired shape.

The same laser beam can be used not only for cutting through acrylic, but also for engraving designs on the surface. By adjusting the settings, the machine can vaporize only a shallow layer from the surface of the acrylic, leaving an engraved design.

What Type of Laser Cutter Can Cut Acrylic?

CO2 laser cutters emit laser beams in the infrared region, which can be absorbed by acrylic of all colors, making them the most suitable laser type for cutting acrylic. Those with sufficient power, such as the xTool P2, can easily cut acrylic in a single pass.

Generally, diode lasers, including those found in xTool machines, struggle to cut white acrylic effectively due to its reflective properties. White acrylic reflects most of the light from a diode laser, meaning it doesn’t absorb enough energy to cut through the material.