Research article

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This article describes the test results for laser markability of automotive electrical cables. The insulation is PVC, but the colour and construction of the insulations are different. Two types of laser workstations were used, one with a wavelength of 1064 nm and another with 532 nm. The penetration depth of the laser beam was determined by optical microscopy on cross sections. The 1064 nm laser beam can mark all investigated materials with good contrast, except the yellow insulation. The 532 nm laser beam with fast speed can hardly produce contrast with any of the materials. The laser markability of the yellow insulation was found to be the most problematic. On the two-layer insulation, despite the whitening of the inner material, dark marking is produced because the heat developing on the interface of the two layers will heat up and carbonize the transparent layer.