How to make a laser beam at home. How to make a laser with your own hands at home: tips

Sometimes you can make something really incredible and useful from unnecessary things stored at home. Do you have an old DVD-RW (writer) drive lying around at home? We will show you how to do powerful laser at home by borrowing elements from it.

Safety

The device we end up with is not a harmless toy! Before you make a laser, take care of your safety: hitting the beam in the eyes is detrimental to the retina, especially if the invention is powerful. Therefore, we advise you to carry out all work in special protective glasses that will save your eyesight if something goes wrong and you accidentally direct the laser beam into yourself or a friend's eyes.

When using the laser in the future, remember these simple safety precautions:

• Do not aim the laser beam at flammable or explosive objects.
• Do not shine on reflective surfaces (glasses, mirrors).
• Even a laser beam fired from a distance of up to 100 m poses a danger to the human and animal retinas.

Working with the laser module

The main thing we need is a burner. Note that the higher the write speed, the more powerful our DVD laser will be. It goes without saying that after removing the laser module, the equipment will become inoperative, so disassemble only such a device that you no longer need.

And now we start:

The first part of our work is over. Let's move on to the next important step.

Assembling the device circuit

We need a circuit in order to control the power of our device. Otherwise, it will simply burn out on the first use. You will see the drawing for the laser below.

Suitable for our device surface mounting. And now let's move on to providing power to a do-it-yourself laser.

Device power supply

At a minimum, we will need 3.7 V. Old batteries from mobile phones, penlight batteries. It is only necessary to connect them in parallel with each other. To check the operation of the device or a stationary laser pointer, a stabilization power supply is suitable.

At this stage, you can already test the operation of the device. Point it at the wall, floor and turn on the power. You should see a bunch of bright reddish color. In the dark, it looks like a powerful infrared flashlight.

You can see that while the glow is far from the laser: the beam is too wide; he asks to be focused. This is what we will do next.

Lens for focusing the laser beam

To adjust the focal length, you can get by with a lens borrowed from the same DVD-RW drive.

Now reconnect the power to the device, directing its light to any surface through this lens. Happened? Then we move on to the final stage of work - placing all the elements in a rigid case.

Case manufacturing

Many, advising how to make a laser, say that the easiest way is to place the module in a case from a small flashlight or a Chinese laser pointer. Where, by the way, there is already a lens. But let's analyze the situation, if neither one nor the other was at hand.

Alternatively, put the elements in aluminum profile. It is easily sawn with a hacksaw, modeled with pliers. You can also add a small finger battery here. How to do this, the photo below will guide you.

Be sure to insulate all contacts. The next step is fixing the lens in the housing. It is easiest to mount it on plasticine - so you can adjust the most successful position. In some cases, a better effect is achieved if you turn the lens towards the laser diode with the convex side.

Turn on the laser and adjust the beam clarity. Once you are satisfied with the results, lock the lens into the housing. Then close it entirely, for example, tightly wrapping it with electrical tape.

How to make a laser: an alternative way

We will offer you another, somewhat different way to make a homemade powerful laser. You will need the following:

• DVD-RW drive with a recording speed of 16x or more.
• Three finger batteries.
• Capacitors 100 mF and 100 pF.
• Resistor from 2 to 5 ohms.
• Wires.
• Soldering iron.
• Laser pointer (or any other collimator - this is the name of the module with a lens).
• LED steel lantern.

Now let's see how to make a laser using this method:

1. Remove the laser module located in the device carriage from the drive in the way already described. Remember to protect it from static electricity by wrapping the outputs with thin wire or wearing an antistatic wrist strap.
2. According to the above scheme, solder the driver - the board that will output our homemade product to desired power. Pay great attention to polarity so as not to damage the sensitive laser diode.
3. In this step, we will test the performance of the newly built driver. If the laser module is from a model with a speed of 16x, then a current of 300-350 mA is enough for it. If higher (up to 22x), then stop at 500mA.
4. After you have verified that the driver is suitable, it must be placed in the case. It can be either a base from a Chinese laser pointer with a lens already mounted, or a more suitable housing from an LED flashlight.

Laser testing

And here is what you were interested in how to make a laser for. Let's move on to practical testing of the device. In no case do not spend it at home - only on the street, away from fire and explosive objects, buildings, dead wood, heaps of garbage, etc. For experiments, we need paper, plastic, the same electrical tape, plywood.

So let's start:

• Place a sheet of paper on asphalt, stone, brick. Aim an already well-focused laser beam at it. You will see that after a while the leaf will begin to smoke, and then it will completely light up.
• Now let's move on to plastic - it will also begin to smoke from exposure to a laser beam. We do not recommend conducting such experiments for a long time: the combustion products of this material are very toxic.
• Most interesting experience- with plywood, flat plank. A focused laser can burn a certain inscription, drawing on it.

A home laser is, of course, a delicate work and a capricious invention. Therefore, it is quite possible that your craft will soon fail, as certain storage and operating conditions are important for it, which cannot be provided at home. The most powerful lasers, which can easily cut metal, can only be obtained in specialized laboratories; naturally, they are not available to amateurs. However, a conventional device is also very dangerous - directed from a long distance into the eyes of a person or animal, close to a flammable object.

Many of you have probably heard that it is quite possible to make a laser pointer or even a cutting beam at home using simple tools at hand, but few people know how to make a laser yourself. Before you start working on it, be sure to familiarize yourself with the safety precautions.

Laser Safety Rules

Improper use of the beam, especially high power, can result in damage to property, as well as severe harm to your health or the health of bystanders. Therefore, before testing your own made copy, remember the following rules:

1. Make sure there are no animals or children in the testing room.
2. Never point the beam at animals or people.
3. Use protective goggles, such as goggles used for welding.
4. Remember that even a reflected beam can harm your eyesight. Never shine a laser into your eyes.
5. Do not use the laser to ignite objects while indoors.

The simplest laser from a computer mouse

If you need a laser just for fun, it's enough to know how to make a laser at home from a mouse. Its power will be quite insignificant, but it will not be difficult to make it. All you need is a computer mouse, a small soldering iron, batteries, wires and a shutdown switch.

First, the mouse must be disassembled. It is important not to break them out, but to carefully unwind and remove them in order. Top cover first, then bottom cover. Next, using a soldering iron, you need to remove the mouse laser from the board and solder new wires to it. Now it remains to connect them to the shutdown toggle switch and connect the wires to the battery contacts. Batteries can be used of any type: both finger-type and so-called pancakes.

Thus, the simplest laser is ready.

If a weak beam is not enough for you, and you are interested in how to make a laser at home from improvised means with a sufficiently high power, then you should try more hard way its manufacture, using a DVD-RW drive.

For work you will need:

• DVD-RW drive (recording speed must be at least 16x);
• AAA battery, 3 pcs.;
• resistor (from two to five ohms);
• collimator (you can replace it with a part from a cheap Chinese laser pointer);
• capacitors 100 pF and 100 mF;
• steel LED lantern;
• wires and soldering iron.

Work progress:

The first thing we need is a laser diode. It is located in the DVD-RW drive carriage. It has a larger heatsink than a conventional infrared diode. But be careful, this part is very fragile. While the diode is not installed, it is best to wire its lead, as it is too sensitive to static voltage. Pay Special attention to polarity. If the power supply is incorrect, the diode will immediately fail.

Connect the parts as follows: battery, on / off button, resistor, capacitors, laser diode. When the performance of the design has been verified, it remains only to come up with a convenient case for the laser. For these purposes, a steel case from a conventional flashlight is quite suitable. Do not forget also about the collimator, because it is he who turns the radiation into a thin beam.

Now that you know how to make a laser at home, remember to follow safety precautions, store it in a special case and do not carry it with you, as law enforcement agencies may make claims about this.

Watch the video: Laser from a DVD drive at home and with your own hands

A laser cutter is a unique gadget that is useful to have in everyone's garage. modern man. Making a laser for cutting metal with your own hands is not difficult, the main thing is to follow simple rules. The power of such a device will be small, but there are ways to increase it with improvised devices. The functionality of a production machine, which, without embellishment, can do anything, cannot be achieved by homemade work. But for household chores, this unit will come in handy. Let's see how to build it.

How to make a laser cutter in the garage

Everything is ingeniously simple, so to create such equipment that can cut beautiful patterns in strong steels, can be made from ordinary improvised materials. For manufacturing, you will definitely need an old laser pointer. In addition, stock up on:

1. Flashlight powered by rechargeable batteries.
2. An old DVD-ROM from which we need to extract the laser drive matrix.
3. Soldering iron and screwdriver set.

The first step is to disassemble the drive of the old computer drive. From there we should remove the device. Be careful not to damage the device itself. The disk drive must be a writer, not just a reader, the point is in the structure of the device matrix. Now we will not go into details, but just use modern non-working models.

After that, you will definitely need to remove the red diode that burns the disc while writing information to it. We just took a soldering iron and unsoldered the fasteners of this diode. Just don't throw it away. This is a sensitive element that, if damaged, can quickly deteriorate.

When assembling the laser cutter the following should be taken into account:

1. Where is the best place to install a red diode
2. How will the elements of the entire system be powered?
3. How will the electric current flows in the part.

Remember! The diode that will perform the burn requires much more electricity than the elements of the pointer.

The solution to this dilemma is simple. The diode from the pointer is replaced by a red light from the drive. You should disassemble the pointer with the same care as the drive, damage to the connectors and holders will ruin your future with your own hands. When you have done this, you can start making a homemade case.

To do this, you will need a flashlight and rechargeable batteries that will power the laser cutter. Thanks to the flashlight, you will get a convenient and compact item that does not take up much space in your home. key point The equipment of such an enclosure is to choose the correct polarity. The protective glass is removed from the former flashlight so that it is not an obstacle to the directional beam.

The next step is to power the diode itself. To do this, you need to connect it to the battery charger, observing the polarity. Finally, check:

• Reliability of device fixation in clamps and clamps;
• Device polarity;
• beam direction.

Screw inaccuracies, and when everything is ready, you can congratulate yourself on the successful completed work. The cutter is ready to use. The only thing to remember is that its power is much less than the power of its production counterpart, so too thick metal is beyond its power.

Carefully! The power of the device is enough to harm your health, so be careful while operating and try not to put your fingers under the beam.

Strengthening the homemade installation

To enhance the power and density of the beam, which is the main cutting element, you should prepare:

• 2 "conders" for 100 pF and mF;
• Resistance at 2-5 ohms;
• 3 rechargeable batteries;
• collimator.

The installation that you have already assembled can be strengthened in order to get enough power in everyday life for any work with metal. When working on amplification, remember that plugging your cutter directly into an outlet will be suicidal for it, so care must be taken to ensure that the current first hits the capacitors, after which it is given to the batteries.

By adding resistors you can increase the power of your installation. To further increase the efficiency of your device, use a collimator that is mounted to collect the beam. Such a model is sold in any store for an electrician, and the cost ranges from 200 to 600 rubles, so it is not difficult to buy it.

Further, the assembly scheme is carried out in the same way as discussed above, only aluminum wire should be wound around the diode to remove static. After that, you have to measure the current strength, for which a multimeter is taken. Both ends of the device are connected to the remaining diode and measured. Depending on your needs, you can adjust the readings from 300mA to 500mA.

After the current calibration is done, you can proceed to the aesthetic decoration of your torch. For the case, an old steel flashlight with LEDs will do just fine. It is compact and fits in your pocket. To prevent the lens from getting dirty, be sure to get a case.

Store the finished cutter in a box or case. Dust or moisture must not enter there, otherwise the device will be disabled.

What is the difference between ready models

Cost is the main reason why many craftsmen resort to making their own laser cutter. And the working principle is as follows:

1. Due to the creation of a directional laser beam, the metal is affected
2. Powerful radiation causes the material to evaporate and exit under the force of the stream.
3. As a result, thanks to the small diameter of the laser beam, a high-quality cut of the workpiece is obtained.

The depth of cut will depend on the power of the components. If the factory models are equipped with high quality materials that provide a sufficient depth indicator. That homemade models able to cope with a crash of 1-3 cm.

Thanks to such laser systems, you can make unique patterns in the fence of a private house, accessories for decorating gates or fences. There are only 3 types of cutters:

1. Solid state. The principle of operation is tied to the use of special types of glass or crystals of LED equipment. It's inexpensive production plants that are used in production.
2. Fiber. Through the use optical fiber you can get a powerful flow and sufficient depth of cut. They are analogues of solid models, but due to their capabilities and performance characteristics, they are better. But also more expensive.
3. Gas. From the name it is clear that gas is used for operation. It could be nitrogen, helium, carbon dioxide. The efficiency of such devices is 20% higher than that of all previous ones. They are used for cutting, welding polymers, rubber, glass and even metal with a very high level of thermal conductivity.

In everyday life, at no extra cost, you can only get a solid-state laser cutter, but its power, with proper amplification, which was discussed above, is enough to perform domestic work. Now you have the knowledge regarding the manufacture of such a device, and then just act and try.

Do you have experience in developing a laser cutter for metal with your own hands? Share with readers by leaving a comment below this article!

Who in childhood did not dream of laser? Some men still dream. Ordinary laser pointers with low power are no longer relevant, as their power leaves much to be desired. There are 2 ways left: buy an expensive laser or make it at home from improvised means.

• From an old or broken DVD drive
• From computer mouse and flashlight
• From a kit of parts purchased from an electronics store

How to make a laser at home from the oldDVDdrive

1. Find a non-working or unwanted DVD drive capable of recording at speeds greater than 16x that put out more than 160mW of power. Why can't you take a CD burner, you ask. The fact is that its diode emits infrared light, which is not visible to the human eye.
2. Remove the laser head from the drive. To access the “innards”, unscrew the screws located on the bottom of the drive and remove the laser head, which is also held in place with screws. It can be in a shell or under a transparent window, or maybe even outside. The most difficult thing is to extract the diode itself from it. Attention: the diode is very sensitive to static electricity.
3. Get a lens, without which the use of the diode will be impossible. You can use an ordinary magnifying glass, but then you have to twist and adjust it every time. Or you can purchase another diode complete with a lens, and then replace it with the diode removed from the drive.
4. Then you have to buy or assemble a circuit to power the diode and assemble the structure together. In the diode of a DVD drive, the center pin acts as a negative terminal.
5. Connect a suitable power supply and focus the lens. It remains only to find a suitable container for the laser. You can use a metal flashlight for these purposes, suitable in size.
6. We recommend watching this video, where everything is shown in great detail:

How to make a laser from a computer mouse

The power of a laser made from computer mouse will be much less than the laser power produced by the previous method. The manufacturing process is not much different.

1. First of all, find an old or unwanted mouse with visible laser any color. Mice with an invisible glow will not work for obvious reasons.
2. Next, carefully disassemble it. Inside you will notice a laser that will have to be soldered with a soldering iron.
3. Now repeat steps 3-5 from the above instructions. The difference between such lasers, we repeat, is only in power.

Each of us held a laser pointer in our hands. Despite the decorativeness of the application, it contains a real laser, assembled on the basis of a semiconductor diode. The same elements are installed on laser levels and.

The next popular semiconductor-based product is your computer's DVD burner. It has a more powerful laser diode with thermal destructive power.

This allows you to burn a disc layer, putting tracks with digital information on it.

How does a semiconductor laser work?

Devices of this type are inexpensive to manufacture, the design is quite massive. The principle of laser (semiconductor) diodes is based on the use of the classic p-n junction. Such a transition works, as in conventional LEDs.

The difference in the organization of radiation: LEDs emit "spontaneously", and laser diodes "forced".

The general principle of the formation of the so-called "population" of quantum radiation is carried out without mirrors. The edges of the crystal are chipping mechanically, providing the effect of refraction at the ends, akin to a mirror surface.

To obtain a different type of radiation, a “homojunction” can be used, when both semiconductors are the same, or a “heterojunction”, with different materials transition.

The laser diode itself is an affordable radio component. You can buy it in stores selling radio components, or you can remove it from an old DVD-R drive(DVD-RW).

Important! Even a simple laser used in light pointers can seriously damage the retina.

More powerful installations, with a burning beam, can deprive of vision or cause burns to the skin. Therefore, when working with such devices, be extremely careful.

With such a diode at your disposal, you can easily make a powerful laser with your own hands. In fact, the product may be completely free, or it will cost you ridiculous money.

Do-it-yourself laser from a DVD drive

First, you need to get the drive itself. It can be removed from an old computer or purchased at a flea market for a symbolic cost.

Information: The higher the declared write speed, the more powerful the burn laser used in the drive.

Having removed the case, and having disconnected the control cables, we dismantle the writing head together with the carriage.

To remove the laser diode:

1. We connect the legs of the diode to each other with a wire (shunt). When dismantled, static electricity may accumulate and the diode may fail.
2. Remove the aluminum heatsink. It is quite fragile, has a mount, structurally “sharpened” for a specific DVD drive, and is not needed for further operation. Just bite the radiator with wire cutters (without damaging the diode)
3. Solder the diode, release the legs from the shunt.

The element looks like this:

The next important element is the power supply circuit of the laser. Using the power supply from the DVD drive will not work. It is integrated into the overall control scheme, it is technically impossible to extract it from there. Therefore, we make the power circuit ourselves.

There is a temptation to simply connect 5 volts with a limiting resistor, and not bother with the circuit. This is the wrong approach, since any LEDs (including laser ones) are powered not by voltage, but by current. Accordingly, a current stabilizer is needed. Most affordable option- using the LM317 chip.

The output resistor R1 is selected in accordance with the power supply current of the laser diode. In this circuit, the current should correspond to 200 mA.

You can assemble a laser with your own hands in a housing from a light pointer, or purchase finished module for a laser in electronics stores or on Chinese sites (for example, Ali Express).

The advantage of this solution is that you get a ready-made adjustable lens in the kit. The power supply circuit (driver) fits easily into the module case.

If you decide to make the case yourself, from some metal tube– You can use a standard lens from the same DVD drive. Only it will be necessary to come up with a method of attachment, and the possibility of adjusting the focus.

Important! Focusing the beam is necessary for any design. It can be parallel (if you need range) or conical (if you need to get a concentrated thermal spot).

A lens complete with a regulating device is called a collimator.

To properly connect the laser from the DVD drive, you need a pin diagram. You can trace the negative and positive wires by markings on the circuit board. This must be done before dismantling the diode. If this is not possible, use a typical hint:

The negative contact has an electrical connection with the body of the diode. It won't be difficult to find him. Regarding the minus located below, the positive contact will be on the right.

If you have a three-legged laser diode (and most of them are), there will be either an unused pin on the left or a photodiode connection. This happens if both the burning and reading element are located in the same housing.

The main body is selected based on the size of the batteries or accumulators that you plan to use. Carefully attach your homemade laser module to it, and the device is ready for use.

With the help of such a tool, you can engrave, burn wood, cut fusible materials (fabric, cardboard, felt, foam, etc.).

How to make an even more powerful laser?

If you need a cutter for wood or plastic, the power of a standard diode from a DVD drive is not enough. You will either need a ready-made diode with a power of 500-800 mW, or you will have to spend a lot of time looking for suitable DVD drives. In some LG and SONY models, laser diodes with a power of 250-300 mW are installed.

The main thing is that such technologies are available for self-production.

Step-by-step video instruction telling how to make a laser from a DVD drive with your own hands

Hello ladies and gentlemen. Today I am opening a series of articles on powerful lasers, because habrapoisk says that people are looking for similar articles. I want to tell you how you can make a fairly powerful laser at home, and also teach you how to use this power not just for the sake of “shine on the clouds”.

A warning!

The article describes the manufacture of a high-power laser ( 300mW ~ power 500 Chinese pointers), which can harm your health and the health of others! Be extremely careful! Use safety goggles and do not point the laser beam at people or animals!

Let's find out.

On Habré, articles about portable lasers Dragon Lasers, such as Hulk, slipped just a couple of times. In this article I will tell you how you can make a laser that is not inferior in power to most models sold in this store.

Cooking.

First you need to prepare all the components:
- non-working (or working) DVD-RW drive with a recording speed of 16x or higher;
- capacitors 100 pF and 100 mF;
- resistor 2-5 Ohm;
- three AAA batteries;
- soldering iron and wires;
- collimator (or Chinese pointer);
- steel LED lamp.

This is a necessary minimum for the manufacture of a simple driver model. The driver is, in fact, a board that will output our laser diode to the required power. It is not worth connecting the power source directly to the laser diode - it will fail. The laser diode must be powered by current, not voltage.

A collimator is, in fact, a module with a lens that reduces all radiation into a narrow beam. Ready-made collimators can be bought at radio stores. These already immediately have a convenient place to install a laser diode, and the cost is 200-500 rubles.

You can also use a collimator from a Chinese pointer, however, the laser diode will be difficult to fix, and the body of the collimator itself will most likely be made of metallized plastic. So our diode will be poorly cooled. But this is also possible. This option can be seen at the end of the article.

We do.

First you need to get the laser diode itself. This is a very fragile and small part of our DVD-RW drive - be careful. A powerful red laser diode is located in the carriage of our drive. You can distinguish it from a weak one by the radiator bigger size than a conventional IR diode.

It is recommended to use an anti-static wrist strap as the laser diode is very sensitive to static electricity. If there is no bracelet, then you can wrap the diode leads with a thin wire while it waits for installation in the case.

According to this scheme, you need to solder the driver.

Do not reverse the polarity! The laser diode will also fail instantly if the polarity of the input power is reversed.

The diagram shows a 200 mF capacitor, however, 50-100 mF is enough for portability.

We try.

Before installing the laser diode and assembling everything into the case, check the driver's performance. Connect another laser diode (non-working or the second one from the drive) and measure the current with a multimeter. Depending on the speed characteristics, the current strength must be chosen correctly. For 16x models, 300-350mA is quite suitable. For the fastest 22x, even 500mA can be applied, but with a completely different driver, the manufacture of which I plan to describe in another article.

Looks terrible, but it works!

Aesthetics.

You can brag about a laser assembled by weight only in front of the same crazy techno-maniacs, but for beauty and convenience it is better to assemble it in a convenient case. Here it is better to choose the way you like it. I mounted the whole circuit in a regular LED flashlight. Its dimensions do not exceed 10x4cm. However, I do not advise you to carry it with you: you never know what claims can be made by the relevant authorities. And it is better to store in a special case so that the sensitive lens does not get dusty.

This is the variant with minimal cost- a collimator from a Chinese pointer is used:

Using a factory-produced module will produce the following results:

The laser beam is visible in the evening:

And, of course, in the dark:

Maybe.

Yes, I want to tell and show in the following articles how such lasers can be used. How to make much more powerful specimens that can cut metal and wood, and not just set fire to matches and melt plastic. How to make holograms and scan objects to get 3D Studio Max models. How to make powerful green or blue lasers. The scope of lasers is quite wide, and one article is not enough.

Need to remember.

Don't forget about safety! Lasers are not toys! Take care of your eyes!

Hello ladies and gentlemen. Today I am opening a series of articles on powerful lasers, because habrapoisk says that people are looking for similar articles. I want to tell you how you can make a fairly powerful laser at home, and also teach you how to use this power not just for the sake of “shine on the clouds”.

A warning!

The article describes the manufacture of a powerful laser (300mW ~ power of 500 Chinese pointers), which can harm your health and the health of others! Be extremely careful! Use special protective goggles and do not direct the laser beam at people or animals!

On Habré, articles about portable Dragon Lasers, such as Hulk, slipped just a couple of times. In this article I will tell you how you can make a laser that is not inferior in power to most models sold in this store.

First you need to prepare all the components:

• - non-working (or working) DVD-RW drive with a recording speed of 16x or higher;
• - capacitors 100 pF and 100 mF;
• - resistor 2-5 Ohm;
• - three AAA batteries;
• - soldering iron and wires;
• - collimator (or Chinese pointer);
• - Steel LED lamp.

This is necessary minimum to make a simple driver model. A driver is, in fact, a board that will output our laser diode to the required power. It is not worth connecting a power source directly to the laser diode - it will fail. The laser diode must be powered by current, not voltage.

A collimator is, in fact, a module with a lens that reduces all radiation into a narrow beam. Ready-made collimators can be bought at radio stores. These already immediately have a convenient place to install a laser diode, and the cost is 200-500 rubles.

You can also use a collimator from a Chinese pointer, however, the laser diode will be difficult to fix, and the body of the collimator itself will most likely be made of metallized plastic. So our diode will be poorly cooled. But this is also possible. This option can be seen at the end of the article.

First you need to get the laser diode itself. This is a very fragile and small part of our DVD-RW drive - be careful. A powerful red laser diode is located in the carriage of our drive. You can distinguish it from a weak one by a larger radiator than a conventional IR diode.

It is recommended to use an anti-static wrist strap as the laser diode is very sensitive to static electricity. If there is no bracelet, then you can wrap the diode leads with a thin wire while it waits for installation in the case.

According to this scheme, you need to solder the driver.

Do not reverse the polarity! The laser diode will also fail instantly if the polarity of the input power is reversed.

The diagram shows a 200 mF capacitor, however, 50-100 mF is enough for portability.

Before installing the laser diode and assembling everything into the case, check the driver's performance. Connect another laser diode (non-working or the second one from the drive) and measure the current with a multimeter. Depending on the speed characteristics, the current strength must be chosen correctly. For 16x models, 300-350mA is quite suitable. For the fastest 22x, even 500mA can be applied, but with a completely different driver, the manufacture of which I plan to describe in another article.

Looks terrible, but it works!

Aesthetics.

You can brag about a laser assembled by weight only in front of the same crazy techno-maniacs, but for beauty and convenience it is better to assemble it in a convenient case. Here it is better to choose the way you like it. I mounted the whole circuit in a regular LED flashlight. Its dimensions do not exceed 10x4cm. However, I do not advise you to carry it with you: you never know what claims can be made by the relevant authorities. And it is better to store in a special case so that the sensitive lens does not get dusty.

This is an option with minimal costs - a collimator from a Chinese pointer is used:

Using a factory-produced module will produce the following results:

The laser beam is visible in the evening:

And, of course, in the dark:

Maybe.

Yes, I want to tell and show in the following articles how such lasers can be used. How to make much more powerful specimens that can cut metal and wood, and not just set fire to matches and melt plastic. How to make holograms and scan objects to get 3D Studio Max models. How to make powerful green or blue lasers. The scope of lasers is quite wide, and one article is not enough.

Attention! Don't forget about safety! Lasers are not toys! Take care of your eyes!

The word “laser” or “laser” is an abbreviation for “light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation.” In Russian: - “amplification of light by stimulated emission”, or an optical quantum generator. The first laser, which used a silver-coated ruby ​​cylinder as a resonator, was developed in 1960 by Hughes Research Laboratories, California. .Today, lasers are used for a variety of purposes ranging from measuring various sizes before reading the encoded data. There are several ways to make a laser, depending on your budget and skills.

Steps

Part 1

Understanding how a laser works

The laser needs a power source to operate. Lasers work by excitation of electrons in the active medium of the laser external source energy and stimulate them to emit light of a certain wavelength. This process was first proposed in 1917 by Albert Einstein. In order for the electrons (in the atoms of the active medium of the laser) to emit light, they must first absorb energy by moving to a higher orbit, and then give this energy in the form of a particle of light when returning to the original orbit. This way of introducing energy into the laser active medium is called “pumping.”

Channel passage of energy through an active (amplifying) medium. The amplifying medium or active laser medium increases the intensity of light due to the induced (forced) emission emitted by electrons. The amplifying medium can be any structure or substance listed below:

Installing mirrors to hold the light inside the laser. Mirrors, or resonators, hold light within working chamber laser until the desired level of energy is accumulated for radiation through a small hole in one of the mirrors or through a lens.

• The simplest resonator or "linear resonator" uses two mirrors placed on opposite sides of the laser's working chamber to generate one output beam.
• A more complex "ring resonator" uses three or more mirrors. It can generate multiple beams or a single beam with an optical isolator.

1. The use of a focusing lens to direct light through an amplifying medium. Along with mirrors, the lens helps to concentrate and direct the light so that the amplifying medium receives as much light as possible.

   Part 2

   Construction of the Laser

   Method One: Building a Laser from a Kit

   1. Purchase. You can buy in an electronics store or buy online "laser kit", "laser kit", "laser module" or "laser diode". The laser kit should include the following:

      • Driver schema. Sometimes sold separately from other components. Choose a driver circuit that will allow you to regulate the current.
      • laser diode.
      • The adjusting lens can be glass or plastic. Typically, the diode and lens are bundled together in a small tube. These components are sometimes sold separately without a driver.

   2. Assembling the driver circuit. Many laser kits are sold with an unassembled driver. These sets include printed circuit board and the corresponding parts, and you have to solder them, following the attached diagram. Some kits may have the driver assembled.

      Connect the control unit to the laser diode. If you have a digital multimeter, you can include it in a diode circuit to monitor the current. Most laser diodes have a current in the range of 30 to 250 milliamps (mA). The current range from 100 to 150 mA will give a fairly powerful beam.

      • You can give more current to the laser diode to get a more powerful beam, but the extra current will shorten the life or even burn out the diode.

   3. Connect the power supply or battery to the driver circuit. The laser diode should glow brightly.

   4. Rotate the lens to focus the laser beam. Point it at the wall and focus until a nice, bright point appears.

      • Once you have adjusted the lens in this way, place the match in line with the beam and rotate the lens until you see the match head begin to smoke. You can also try to pop Balloons or burn holes in paper.

   Method Two: Building a Diode Laser from an Old DVD or Blu-Ray Drive

   1. Get an old DVD or Blu-ray burner or drive. Choose devices with 16x write speed or faster. These devices have laser diodes with an output power of 150mW or more.

      • The DVD drive has a red laser diode with a wavelength of 650nm.
      • The Blu-ray drive has a blue laser diode with a wavelength of 405nm.
      • The DVD drive must be in good enough condition to burn discs, although not necessarily successfully. In other words, its diode must be good.
      • Do not try to use a DVD reader, CD reader and writer instead of a DVD writer. The DVD reader has a red diode, but not as powerful as the DVD burner. The laser diode in the CD burner is quite powerful, but emits light in the infrared range, and you will get a beam that is not visible to the eye.

   2. Removing the laser diode from the drive. Flip the drive bottom up. You will see screws that will need to be removed before you can separate the drive mechanism and pull out the diode.

      • Once you take the drive apart, you will see a pair of metal rails held in place with screws. They support the laser kit. Unscrew the guides to remove them. Remove the laser kit.
      • The laser diode is smaller than a penny. It has three metal contacts in the form of legs. It can be placed in a metal shell with a protective transparent window or without a window, or it can be not closed by anything.
      • You have to pull the diode out of the laser head. It may be easier to remove the heatsink from the assembly first before attempting to remove the diode. If you have an anti-static wrist strap, use it while removing the diode.
      • Handle the laser diode with care, especially if it is an unprotected diode. If you have an anti-static container, place the diode in it until you begin to assemble the laser.

   3. Prepare the focusing lens. You will have to pass the beam from the diode through a focusing lens to use it as a laser. You can do this in one of two ways:

      • Using a magnifying glass as a focusing lens. Rotate the lens to find the right place to receive the focused laser beam. If necessary, this will have to be done each time before using the laser.
      • Buy a low power laser diode, such as a 5mW laser diode assembly with lens and tube. Then replace it with a laser diode from a DVD burner.

A laser cutter is a unique gadget that is useful to have in the garage of every modern man. Making a laser for cutting metal with your own hands is not difficult, the main thing is to follow simple rules. The power of such a device will be small, but there are ways to increase it with improvised devices. The functionality of a production machine, which, without embellishment, can do anything, cannot be achieved by homemade work. But for household chores, this unit will come in handy. Let's see how to build it.

Everything is ingeniously simple, so to create such equipment that can cut the most beautiful patterns in strong steels, you can make it from ordinary materials at hand. For manufacturing, you will definitely need an old laser pointer. In addition, stock up on:

1. Flashlight powered by rechargeable batteries.
2. An old DVD-ROM from which we need to extract the laser drive matrix.
3. Soldering iron and screwdriver set.

The first step is to disassemble the drive of the old computer drive. From there we should remove the device. Be careful not to damage the device itself. The disk drive must be a writer, not just a reader, the point is in the structure of the device matrix. Now we will not go into details, but just use modern non-working models.

After that, you will definitely need to remove the red diode that burns the disc while writing information to it. We just took a soldering iron and unsoldered the fasteners of this diode. Just don't throw it away. This is a sensitive element that, if damaged, can quickly deteriorate.

When assembling the laser cutter itself, consider the following:

1. Where is the best place to install a red diode
2. How will the elements of the entire system be powered?
3. How flows will be distributed electric current in detail.

Remember! The diode that will perform the burn requires much more electricity than the elements of the pointer.

The solution to this dilemma is simple. The diode from the pointer is replaced by a red light from the drive. You should disassemble the pointer with the same care as the drive, damage to the connectors and holders will ruin your future with your own hands. When you have done this, you can start making a homemade case.

To do this, you will need a flashlight and rechargeable batteries that will power the laser cutter. Thanks to the flashlight, you will get a convenient and compact item that does not take up much space in your home. The key to the equipment of such a case is to choose the correct polarity. The protective glass is removed from the former flashlight so that it is not an obstacle to the directional beam.

The next step is to power the diode itself. To do this, you need to connect it to the battery charger, observing the polarity. Finally, check:

• Reliability of device fixation in clamps and clamps;
• Device polarity;
• beam direction.

Screw inaccuracies, and when everything is ready, you can congratulate yourself on the successful completed work. The cutter is ready to use. The only thing to remember is that its power is much less than the power of its production counterpart, so too thick metal is beyond its power.

Carefully! The power of the device is enough to harm your health, so be careful while operating and try not to put your fingers under the beam.

Strengthening the homemade installation

To enhance the power and density of the beam, which is the main cutting element, you should prepare:

• 2 "conders" for 100 pF and mF;
• Resistance at 2-5 ohms;
• 3 rechargeable batteries;
• collimator.

The installation that you have already assembled can be strengthened in order to get enough power in everyday life for any work with metal. When working on amplification, remember that plugging your cutter directly into an outlet will be suicidal for it, so care must be taken to ensure that the current first hits the capacitors, after which it is given to the batteries.

By adding resistors you can increase the power of your installation. To further increase the efficiency of your device, use a collimator that is mounted to collect the beam. Such a model is sold in any store for an electrician, and the cost ranges from 200 to 600 rubles, so it is not difficult to buy it.

Further, the assembly scheme is carried out in the same way as discussed above, only aluminum wire should be wound around the diode to remove static. After that, you have to measure the current strength, for which a multimeter is taken. Both ends of the device are connected to the remaining diode and measured. Depending on your needs, you can adjust the readings from 300mA to 500mA.

After the current calibration is done, you can proceed to the aesthetic decoration of your torch. For the case, an old steel flashlight with LEDs will do just fine. It is compact and fits in your pocket. To prevent the lens from getting dirty, be sure to get a case.

Store the finished cutter in a box or case. Dust or moisture must not enter there, otherwise the device will be disabled.

What is the difference between ready models

Cost is the main reason why many craftsmen resort to making their own laser cutter. And the working principle is as follows:

1. Due to the creation of a directional laser beam, the metal is affected
2. Powerful radiation causes the material to evaporate and exit under the force of the stream.
3. As a result, thanks to the small diameter of the laser beam, a high-quality cut of the workpiece is obtained.

The depth of cut will depend on the power of the components. If the factory models are equipped with high quality materials that provide a sufficient depth indicator. Then home-made models are able to cope with a crash of 1-3 cm.

Thanks to such laser systems, you can make unique patterns in the fence of a private house, accessories for decorating gates or fences. There are only 3 types of cutters:

1. Solid state. The principle of operation is tied to the use of special types of glass or crystals of LED equipment. These are inexpensive production units that are used in production.
2. Fiber. Thanks to the use of optical fiber, a powerful flow and sufficient cutting depth can be obtained. They are analogues of solid models, but due to their capabilities and performance characteristics, they are better. But also more expensive.
3. Gas. From the name it is clear that gas is used for operation. It can be nitrogen, helium, carbon dioxide. The efficiency of such devices is 20% higher than that of all previous ones. They are used for cutting, welding polymers, rubber, glass and even metal with a very high level of thermal conductivity.

In everyday life, you can only get a solid-state laser cutter at no extra cost, but its power, with proper amplification, which was discussed above, is enough to perform household work. Now you have the knowledge regarding the manufacture of such a device, and then just act and try.

Do you have experience in developing a laser cutter for metal with your own hands? Share with readers by leaving a comment below this article!