Laser specifications include maximum laser output power and laser type. Most laser cutting and welding machines use carbon dioxide (CO2) lasers; neodymium-doped, yttrium aluminum garnet (Nd:YAG) ...

[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 ...

Further fiddling with the mirrors revealed the least little bit of laser output — nowhere near enough to start cutting, but certainly on the path to the ultimate goal of building a laser cutter.