What Is A CO2 Laser And How Does It Work?

To learn on the topic of CO₂ lasers, look no further than this blog because at Gentec-EO we know a lot about this type of lasers given that our parent company Gentec inc. developed the first CO₂ laser energy meter in the world in 1972. Since then, we never stopped striving to improve our product offering for this market. 

They may be nearing their 60th birthday, but CO₂ lasers are nowhere near retirement. In fact, their global market value is projected to increase by half a billion dollars by 2025.

BUT WHAT IS A CO₂ LASER?

A 20% APPROPRIATE NAME                                  

All lasers require what’s known as a lasing medium. It’s in this lasing medium that the Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation (LASER) happens.

Lasing mediums come in a few varieties: solid state, excimer, dye, semiconductor (or diode), and finally gas lasers, the family CO₂ lasers are in.

You probably won’t be surprised to hear that CO₂ is the active ingredient in making laser light in CO₂ lasers. However, interestingly enough, CO₂ lasers perform much better when the carbon dioxide is diluted to the point it only makes up about 20% of the total gas mixture. We’ll get into why soon.