stereolithography

[‚ster·ē·ō·li′thäg·rə·fē] (industrial engineering) A three-dimensional printing process whereby a CAD drawing of a part is processed to create a file of the part in slices and the part is constructed one slice (or layer) at a time (from bottom to top) by depositing layer upon layer of material (usually a liquid resin that can be hardened using a scanning laser), used for rapid prototyping.

stereolithography

The first 3D printing technology. Pioneered by Chuck Hull of 3D Systems, stereolithography (SL) uses a liquid photopolymer that is cured one layer at a time with a UV laser. Stereolithography is used to make parts as large as 20" x 20" x 24", and engineers and industrial designers envision myriad applications for this process. See 3D printing.

SL for the Consumer

Stereolithography (SL) was brought down to the consumer level in 2012 by Formlabs with its Form 1 3D printer. In this example, an Eiffel tower is being created by beaming the laser up through the liquid photopolymer tray and curing one layer at a time. (Top image courtesy of Formlabs, www.formlabs.com)

stereolithography