On Thu, 20 Oct 2016 12:51:24 -0700 (PDT), wrote:

On Thursday, October 20, 2016 at 12:44:55 PM UTC-4, wrote:
On Thu, 20 Oct 2016 07:22:11 -0700 (PDT), wrote:

On Wednesday, October 19, 2016 at 4:19:24 PM UTC-4, wrote:
I must be looking in the wrong places because I have not yet been able
to find out which metals absorb which frequencies of light best. I am
looking at heating various metals with a laser so I need to know which
laser will work best for which metal. Anybody here have any pointers?
Thanks,
Eric

Heating to how hot? ~60-100 C or heating to 1000 C,
or laser melting and cutting?

George H.
Up to about 200 C.
Thanks,
Eric

It's not anything I know much about. Most metals are reflective,
which makes it not only hard to heat but scary if you are bouncing
a high power laser off it.
I quick google search found this
http://www.me.mtu.edu/~microweb/GRAPH/Laser/SPECMET.JPG
from here,
http://www.me.mtu.edu/~microweb/chap4/ch4-0.htm

So how about iron and ~800 nm - 1.1um... on issue with the near IR is you
can't see it which makes it more dangerous for your eye... no blink reflex.

George H.
I remember seeing a CO2 gas laser used to machine threads into a
ceramic bolt. They kept that monster in a separate room and no one was
allowed inside the room when it was working. there were occasions the
beam reflected around the room and damaged things.