History Main / LaserCutter

** The "Laser Screwdriver" ''sounds'' like it should be one of these, but it isn't: Since the Master carries it, it's a deadly weapon whose lasers can either kill or rapidly age a target.

%%** ''Film/{{Goldfinger}}'' famously sets him up to be cut in half by one, which the eponymous Auric Goldfinger later uses to open the armored door of the main vault's building at Fort Knox. %%Example needs context to make sense on its own.
%%** ''Film/GoldenEye'' introduced the famous laser watch. %%Example needs context to make sense on its own.

** On one mission of the campaign you use a big industrial laser to bore through the door to a [[{{Precursors}} Xel'naga]] vault. It can also be used to destroy enemy Colossi in half a second.

* ''Film/TheHitchhikersGuideToTheGalaxy2005'' has one of these with Trillian having a laser knife that toasts bread as it slices.
* ''Film/Iceman1984'' features an industrial laser that carves off sections of the ice block that Charlie is frozen in.
* The ''Film/IronMan'' armour has two from ''[[Film/IronMan2 the second film]]'' onwards. Tony's do-it-yourself particle accelerator emits a laser beam that slices through his lab wall and some shelving and cabinets as he's aligning it. They prove AwesomeButImpractical, as the suits cannot produce enough power to run even one of them very long -- but when they do hit, they tend to be [[HalfTheManHeUsedToBe pretty damn effective]].

** ''Film/{{Goldfinger}}'' famously sets him up to be cut in half by one, which the eponymous Auric Goldfinger later uses to open the armored door of the main vault's building at Fort Knox.

** ''Film/GoldenEye'' introduced the famous laser watch.

* Creator/OrsonScottCard's ''Literature/EarthUnaware'' has [[AsteroidMiners asteroid mining]] ships using laser drills to cut through asteroid crust to get to the valuable minerals. When the drill is working, the ship is using thrusters firing opposite the laser to counteract the push of the laser on the ship. When the laser hits a pocket of ice, it burns through it very quickly, causing the ship to pitch forward (unfortunately, this means that Card doesn't understand the difference between firing an energy beam and pushing at an object with a stick; it's the firing that causes the push on the ship, not the impact of that laser beam on something else).

* "Laser probes" in ''Series/BlakesSeven'', though their function is always sort of nebulous, probably work like this, based on various peoples' reactions to the threat of being tortured with one.

* The new Redwing drone model seen in ''Series/TheFalconAndTheWinterSoldier'' now has a laser cutter among the many armaments crammed into it. The laser is capable of cutting through aircraft metal.
* In the final season of ''Series/{{Fringe}}'', Walter and Astrid use one to excise videotapes containing [[spoiler:a plan to defeat the Observers]] from synthetic amber.
* The same as in the original comics, ''Series/LoisAndClark'''s Superman regularly uses his heat vision in a mirror in order to shave.

** And there's also the infamous Borg cutter beam. In their introductory episode, they core out a sample of the ''Enterprise'' saucer section and haul it free of the ship with a TractorBeam. [[ThrownOutTheAirlock Along with the poor crewmen inside.]]

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* In ''Ride/JimmyNeutronsNicktoonBlast'' at Ride/UniversalStudios, Ooblar uses one when he's breaking through the walls into Jimmy's lab.
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* The Tactical Laser System from ''VideoGame/AceCombat'' is swept around to cut targets up, rather than a stereotypical [[EnergyWeapon laser cannon]].

* ''VideoGame/ColossatronMassiveWorldThreat'' has a weapon of the same name for Colossatron's green power core, which fires high damage, penetrating energy sawblades in a straight path.

* In ''VideoGame/{{Evolve}}'' the Support character Hank uses one of these as a weapon.

* In ''VideoGame/FTLFasterThanLight'', you can come across a SpacePirate ship stuck between two rocks transmitting a DistressCall. Getting them out safely is not guaranteed unless you use a laser beam weapon, in which case they will reward you nicely.

* Used by the third boss of ''VideoGame/OutZone'' to [[BossArenaUrgency cut away the floor]] and make parts of it fall into the lava.
* The Protoss Colossi of ''VideoGame/StarcraftII'' attack like this, waving two lasers back and forth into clustered enemies.

* In ''VideoGame/TinyAndBig'', this is Tiny's way of manipulating the environment. By using the laser to slice objects, Tiny is able to use the pieces as makeshift platforms that can then be moved around with a rope or rocket attachments.

* In ''WesternAnimation/AdventureTime'', Princess Bubblegum uses these to... [[MundaneUtility slice bread.]]

* The "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS8E2YouOnlyMoveTwice You Only Move Twice]]" episode of ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' had [[AffablyEvil Hank Scorpio]] attempting to kill [[{{Expy}} James Bont]] before Bont manages to escape.

* ''Film/IceMan'' features an industrial laser that carves off sections of the ice block that Charlie is frozen in.

* At the end of ''Film/{{Jigsaw}}'' The last two survivors are Logan and Halloran. They have laser collars placed around their necks, forced to confess their sins. Logan is spared due to admitting he was wrong for accidentally mislabeling Kramer's x-rays for his operation, but Halloran refuses to confess all of his sins, including that he was wrong for murdering the victims Logan operated on, and he forces Logan to die first. So as Logan escapes, it sets off Halloran's laser trap, slicing his head in eighths.

* ''Film/TheHitchhikersGuideToTheGalaxy'' has one of these with Trillian having a laser knife that toasts bread as it slices.

* In ''Videogame/{{Evolve}}'' the Support character Hank uses one of these as a weapon.

* ''Videogame/HardspaceShipbreaker:'' One of your main and most important tools is a laser cutter. In Stinger mode, it just heats up a given object until vaporization, but Splitsaw mode is a bit closer to the typical laser cutter in just directly slicing the object with opposite beams. Just be careful, the laser keeps going and can well slice into or evaporate valuables if you don't watch where you point the thing. And some things are flammable or even explosive and ''will'' go off with even brief exposure.

* In the ''Franchise/DeadSpace'' series, the Plasma Cutter is the [[WeaponOfChoice signature weapon]] of engineer Isaac Clarke, since its precision cutting ability makes it perfect for severing the limbs of the Necromorphs. In the second game, it's shown that most surgical tables in the 26th century use this technology, which allows Isaac to quickly fashion a makeshift cutter using salvaged components.

One of the best known uses of the modern laser is as a high precision metal cutting tool. Whether by using a very powerful laser capable of vaporizing metal, or by using a low power laser to guide a tungsten cutter, the laser was quickly adopted in metalworking for its ability to cut with micrometric precision. At a smaller scale, surgeons will sometimes turn to lasers for their cutting rather than a "knife" or scalpel. In this case, the laser is usually vaporizing watery tissue or disrupting molecular bonds more than "cutting" but the appearance is the same. Smaller lasers are also used by artists, architects and engineers to cut plastic, fabric or cardboard for dioramas, fine projects and printed circuit boards.

Laser cutters have become common in industry and are beginning to come down in price enough for schools and hobbyists (as have plasma cutters, which often get lumped in). They have a long way to go to the easy portability or versatility seen in fiction however. The {{laser blade}} took on a life of its own, becoming a subtrope.

* "[[Recap/NadiaTheSecretOfBlueWaterE38ToTheSky To the Sky...]]", antepenultimate episode of ''Anime/NadiaTheSecretOfBlueWater'', saw the Gratan, previously outfitted by the N-Nautilus crew, using their laser cuters to cut their way through the Red Noah. The high power use of such devises is also recognised, with the [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome near depletion of the battery]] due to reckless use driving their decision to [[spoiler:sacrifice their tank to prevent the Tower of Babel from being used]].

** Supergirl has also used her heat vision as a kind of scalpel. In ''ComicBook/WhoIsSuperwoman'', she used her heat vision to cut a fabric sample off Superwoman's cowl in order to get it analyzed. In ''[[ComicBook/Supergirl2011 New 52]]'' story arc ''ComicBook/{{Crucible}}'', Kara combins her EyeBeams with her microscopic vision to perform surgery on [[ComicBook/{{Superboy}} Kon-El]] on a cellular level. More mundane uses include to shave her legs and cut her hair off.

*** Kara uses her heat vision to slice, polish and weld together with pinpoint accuracy the required pieces to build an ionic ray which will release her parents from the Zone.

** ''Film/DieAnotherDay'' went the extra mile with multiple laser cutters, one of which is used to try cutting Jinx as homage to ''Goldfinger''. The multiple laser activate during a fight between Bond and a henchman and one of them is used to gruesomely kill said henchman through the back of his head and his mouth.

** It's also mentioned that laser weapons are illegal to own. Mining lasers aren't, and wouldn't you know it, sombody performed the obvious modifications and started selling them.

* In Creator/LarryNiven's ''Literature/KnownSpace'' universe flashlight lasers are officially tools, unofficially they can bisect someone at 10 meters. Similarly disintegration beams are "mining tools".

* In Creator/SergeyLukyanenko ''Literature/TheStarsAreColdToys'' duology, [[HumanAliens Geometer]] ships don't have any weapons per se, but have a multitude of tools that can be easily adapted as weapons in a pinch. In fact, these "tools" are so advanced that one of the most powerful [[BeastMan Alari]] fleets gets nearly destroyed when engaging a ''single'' Geometer scoutship. Later, when escaping TheMothership, the scoutship uses its laser probe to slice open the huge warship's hull. In fact, it stars cutting the circular opening slowly, then the scoutship's AI realizes how ''weak'' the outer hull is and swiftly completes the circle.

** One LEGO space set featured laser saws. One mounted on a vehicle and another hand held (Instructed to be used that way, you can change them up).

* In ''VideoGame/AxiomVerge'', one of the player weapons is the Laser Drill. On enemies it works like a slow-burning LaserBlade, but it's also useful for clearing away soft blocks.

* In ''VideoGame/ConquestFrontierWars'', the most powerful warship in the [[EnergyBeing Celareon]] fleet, the Monolith, fires blue lasers that move back and forth over the enemy hull, seeming cutting it. The lasers on other ships act in a typical sci-fi manner.
* In the ''Franchise/DeadSpace'' series, the Plasma Cutter is the [[WeaponOfChoice signature weapon]] of engineer Isaac Clarke, since its precision cutting ability makes it perfect for severing the limbs of the Necromorphs. In the second game it's shown that most surgical tables in the 26th century use this technology, which allows Isaac to quickly fashion a makeshift cutter using salvaged components.

* In ''VideoGame/FreeSpace2'', capital ships have been outfitted with a number of new weapons in the 30 years since the first game. The older ship types still have their original laser turrets, but now field the new massive Beam Cannons as their main guns. When these things fire, they illuminate nearby ships and cause a [[SpaceIsNoisy massive]] [[HellIsThatNoise noise]]. Most larger ship carry between two to four of them, which will instantly vaporize any fighters getting in their path and can cut straight through other large ships. And also an even larger number of only slightly smaller anti-fighter beam turrets that are incredibly difficult to dodge.

* The Protoss Colossi of ''VideoGame/StarcraftII'' attack like this, waving two laser back and forth into clustered enemies.

** One one mission of the campaign you use a big industrial laser to bore through the door to a [[{{Precursors}} Xel'naga]] vault. It can also be used to destroy enemy Colossi in half a second.

* A laser lipstick is one of the key gadgets used by ''WesternAnimation/KimPossible'', even being key to her escape in the Season 3 movie length finale ''So the Drama''.

* Green Lantern from the ''WesternAnimation/SuperFriends'' has an expensive looking nuclear laser he can pull out of HammerSpace with his ring. He uses it to cut a pair of chains.

* The "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS8E2YouOnlyMoveTwice ]]" episode of '''' had [[AffablyEvil Hank Scorpio]] attempting to kill [[{{Expy}} James Bont]] before Bont manages to escape.

[[caption-width-right:350:Today, we're testing the myth that RockBeatsLaser.[[note]]Rock certainly [[HaveANiceDeath beats Henry]], though[[/note]]]]

* One Franchise/{{Lego}} space set featured laser saws. One mounted on a vehicle and another hand held (Instructed to be used that way, you can change them up).

Contrast WeldTheLock, for when lasers and similar things are used to seal doors shut.

**

* In ''VideoGame/TinyAndBig'', this is Tiny's way of manipulating the environment. By using the laser to slice objects, Tiny is able to use the pieces makeshift platforms that can then be moved around with a rope or rocket attachments.

* ''Film/Iceman'' features an industrial laser that carves off sections of the ice block that Charlie is frozen in.

* In the ''Franchise/DeadSpace'' series, the Plasma Cutter is the [[WeaponOfChoice signature weapon]] of engineer Isaac Clarke, since its precision cutting ability makes it perfect for severing the limbs of the Necromorphs. In the second game it's shown that most surgical tables in the 26th century use this technology, which allows Isaac to quickly fashion a makeshift cutter together using salvaged components.

** In an issue, Superman is called upon to use his heat vision as a laser beam to perform surgery on ComicBook/{{Supergirl}} - since she's Kryptonian, no Earth scalpel can cut her.

[[folder:Film--Animated]]

[[folder:Film--Live-Action]]

* The ''Film/IronMan'' armour has two from ''[[Film/IronMan2 the second film]]'' onwards. Tony's do-it-yourself particle accelerator emits a laser beam that slices through his lab wall and some shelving and cabinets as he's aligning it. They prove AwesomeButImpractical, as the suits cannot produce enough power to run even one of them very long - but when they do hit, they tend to be [[HalfTheManHeUsedToBe pretty damn effective]].

* At the end of ''Film/{{Jigsaw}}'' The last two survivors are Logan and Halloran. They have laser collars placed around their necks, forced to confess their sins. Logan is spared due to admitting he was wrong for accidentally mislabeling Kramer's X-rays for his operation, but Halloran refuses to confess all of his sins, including that he was wrong for murdering the victims Logan operated on, and he forces Logan to die first. So as Logan escapes, it sets off Halloran's laser trap, slicing his head in eighths.

** And there's also the infamous Borg cutter beam. In their introductory episode, they core out a sample of the Enterprise saucer section and haul it free of the ship with a TractorBeam. [[ThrownOutTheAirlock Along with the poor crewmen inside.]]
** In an episode of ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine,'' Bashir uses some kind of laser medical cutting tool as a weapon against the MonsterOfTheWeek ([[spoiler: actually, Odo, under the influence of the newly discovered chemical element of the week]]).

* The Carbon Dioxide ([=CO2=]) laser is commonly used for industrial works for cutting and welding, although the beam itself is invisible.
* The Blue Laser can also burn and cut objects, which can be used for engraving.
* A well-focused and coherent Class IV laser can cut/burn through less durable objects like those made of soft plastics, paper, and similar materials. You can find Youtube videos of Class IV lasers being used to pop balloons, burn through optical discs, and set flammable objects alight. As is standard Laser Safety, professional advice holds that wearing safety goggles and avoiding contact with the beam are a must to avoid serious injury.