Stereolithography

<p>Stereolithography (SLA or SL; also known as vat photopolymerisation, optical fabrication, photo-solidification, or resin printing) is a form of <a href="/facts/3D_printing/lbvWU3t0">3D printing</a> technology used for creating <a href="/facts/Scale_model/YgCtlwqb">models</a>, <a href="/facts/Prototype/q0yPLYdb">prototypes</a>, <a href="/facts/Pattern/mzD7uLQa">patterns</a>, and production parts in a layer by layer fashion using <a href="/facts/Photochemistry/GsXNBWon">photochemical</a> processes by which light causes chemical <a href="/facts/Monomer/Gw3CltMb">monomers</a> and <a href="/facts/Oligomer/v7oDY8zu">oligomers</a> to <a href="/facts/Cross-link/zeQ9hEAA">cross-link</a> together to form <a href="/facts/Polymers/eF32E50K">polymers</a>. Those polymers then make up the body of a three-dimensional solid. Research in the area had been conducted during the 1970s, but the term was coined by <a href="/facts/Chuck_Hull/pI5gc9BI">Chuck Hull</a> in 1984 when he applied for a patent on the process, which was granted in 1986.  Stereolithography can be used to create prototypes for products in development, medical models, and computer hardware, as well as in many other applications. While stereolithography is fast and can produce almost any design, it can be expensive.
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Stereolithography open-in-new

Stereolithography