Fiber Laser Coin Engraving in LightBurn: How to Create Multi-Level Depth

The idea: build depth in three levels

The easiest way to understand this technique is to build it up in three stages. Each stage uses the same basic artwork, but the way the shapes interact changes what the laser can do.

Level 1: a basic single-layer coin engraving

Start with a tool layer that represents the engravable area of the coin. Place your subject artwork inside that boundary and engrave it normally. This is the simplest setup: one graphic and one engraving layer.

It works, but every engraved area is effectively treated as the same level. If you want the design to feel more dimensional, you need to start separating the subject from its surroundings.

Level 2: add a background without overlapping the subject

Place your background graphic inside the coin boundary, then position the main subject on top. At this point the two designs overlap, so you should not simply run both fills as-is—the laser would engrave the same areas twice and the result would be messy.

Use an offset and Boolean subtraction

Select the subject and open Tools → Offset Shapes. In the basic version of this technique, the offset distance can be set to 0. Use an outward offset, round corners, outer shapes only, select the resulting objects, and optimize/simplify the result.

With the new offset still selected, also select the background and open Tools → Boolean Assistant. Choose the subtraction direction that removes the subject-shaped area from the background.

The goal is simple: your subject and your background should now fit together without occupying the same space. They can still use the same engraving settings at this stage, but they are independent pieces of artwork.

Level 3: create real physical depth with a “shovel layer”

This is where the technique becomes more interesting. Instead of merely making the subject and background visually different, we are going to physically remove more material behind the subject so the background sits lower in the coin.

I call the extra fill shape the shovel layer because its only job is to dig material away before the final background artwork is engraved.

1. Prepare the subject as one shape

If your raised subject includes disconnected elements—such as small coins or other floating details—join them to the main subject before creating offsets. In LightBurn, select the added shape and the main subject, then use Tools → Boolean Union. Repeat until LightBurn treats all of the raised artwork as one shape.

2. Cut the subject out of the background

Create another outward offset around the subject. In the video I use a very small 0.1 mm offset, which leaves a narrow outline around the raised artwork. Use that offset to Boolean-subtract the subject area from your background.

The exact offset is a design choice, but consistency becomes important in the next step.

3. Create the shovel layer

Make a new filled shape that covers the entire engravable area of the coin. For a round coin, this can simply be a circle sized to match the engraving boundary. Center it precisely with the rest of the design.

Now repeat the same offset-and-subtract process on this new fill. Use the same offset distance you used for the background—in this example, 0.1 mm. This produces a large filled layer with the subject punched out of it.

You should now have three distinct engraving elements:

1. Subject layer: the raised artwork at the top level.
2. Shovel layer: removes material from the area surrounding the subject.
3. Background layer: engraves the pattern into the newly recessed surface.

Run the layers in the correct order

The order is what creates the physical levels.

Pass 1: engrave the subject

Turn off output for the shovel and background layers. Run only the subject engraving.

Pass 2: dig out the background with the shovel layer

Turn the subject off and the shovel layer on. The shovel should remove enough material that the future background sits visibly below the subject.

In the video, the subject was engraved for 50 passes and the shovel layer for 100 passes. Those numbers are an example from that specific setup, not universal settings. Your laser, lens, material, focus, speed, power, frequency, pulse width, and desired depth will change what you need.

Pass 3: engrave the recessed background

Turn the shovel layer off and enable the background artwork. In the video, I used 80 passes for the background. Because that artwork is now being engraved into a surface that the shovel layer already lowered, the finished coin has multiple real physical levels rather than a simple illusion of depth.

Finishing the engraved brass coin

After engraving, the coin in the video was placed in a magnetic tumbler for about half an hour and then treated with brass black to darken the recessed areas. That finishing step increases the visual contrast and makes the different engraved levels easier to see.

The shovel layer does add machining time, but the LightBurn setup itself is straightforward once you understand the relationship between the three layers.

LightBurn tools used in this technique

This project is a useful practical example of several LightBurn tools working together: tool layers for alignment, Offset Shapes, Boolean Union, Boolean subtraction, layer visibility/output controls, and separate pass counts for different parts of the design.

If those tools are still new to you, Fiber Laser Ignite is a free LightBurn-focused fiber laser course that walks through the fundamentals and nine guided engraving projects.

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