Laser etching may help investigators ID bullets

The use of laser etching technique in the identification of bullets was presented. A lifetime testing was performed via a test apparatus that stamped the pin into a block of steel for 30,000 cycles. The laser system etched the surface of the micro-stamp to create the raised characters. The results showed that the process was capable of producing character widths and lengths as small as 0.005 mm and raised heights from a few microns to 0.050 mm.