3D printing glossary
3D printing terms from A to Z
74 terms; short, clear definitions with links to related guides.
3
- 3MF
- A modern 3D printing file format that can also carry color, material and print settings.
A
- ABS
- Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene; a common FDM engineering plastic that resists impact and heat. Details →
- Additive manufacturing
- The general name for methods that build parts by adding material layer by layer; 3D printing. Details →
- Anisotropy
- A material showing different properties in different directions. FDM parts are weaker between layers (Z).
- Annealing
- Controlled heating after printing to increase crystallinity and heat resistance.
- ASA
- Acrylonitrile styrene acrylate; a filament resistant to UV and weather, preferred for outdoor use. Details →
B
- Binder jetting
- An additive manufacturing family that jets liquid binder onto powder layers and sinters the part afterwards. Details →
- Bridging
- A section printed horizontally in mid-air between two supported points. Details →
- Brim
- A thin, wide border added around the first layer of a part to reduce warping.
- Build volume
- The largest part size (X × Y × Z) a printer can print in one go.
C
- CAD
- Computer-aided design; software used to create dimensioned 3D models of parts. Details →
- Castable resin
- A pattern resin that burns out cleanly in a plaster mold in lost-wax casting. Details →
- CNC
- Computer numerical control; subtractive manufacturing that removes material from a block to make a part. Details →
- Curing
- Hardening photopolymer resin with light; post-curing after printing completes its properties.
D
- Debinding
- Removing the binder polymer from metal-filled filament or binder jetting parts. Details →
- Density
- Mass per unit volume (g/cm³); determines the part's weight.
- DLP
- Digital light processing; a resin printing method that cures a whole layer at once with a projector. Details →
- DMLS / SLM
- Powder bed fusion methods that melt metal powder with a laser. Details →
E
- Elephant foot
- The first layers squashing and bulging outward; hidden by adding a chamfer to the bottom edge.
- Elongation at break
- How much a material can stretch before it breaks (%); an indicator of flexibility and toughness.
- Extruder
- The FDM printer unit that pushes filament into the nozzle and melts it.
F
- FDM / FFF
- A technology that builds parts by depositing molten filament from a nozzle layer by layer. Details →
- Filament
- A thin thermoplastic wire wound on a spool, used in FDM printers (usually 1.75 mm). Details →
- Fillet
- Rounding applied to corners; reduces stress concentration and warping. Details →
- Fixture / jig
- A tool that holds or guides a part in production and assembly; one of the most efficient uses of 3D printing.
- Flexural modulus
- A material's stiffness in bending; the higher the value, the less the part flexes.
G
- G-code
- The machine command language that defines a printer's movements and temperatures.
- Glass transition temperature (Tg)
- The temperature at which an amorphous polymer changes from a hard, glassy state to a soft, rubbery one.
H
- HDT (heat deflection temperature)
- The temperature at which a material deflects by a set amount under a given load (0.45 or 1.8 MPa).
- Heat-set insert
- A threaded brass insert pressed into a plastic part with heat; gives a strong, reusable screw connection. Details →
- HIP
- Hot isostatic pressing; a heat treatment that closes pores in metal printed parts. Details →
I
- Infill
- The internal structure filling an FDM part and its ratio (%); determines strength, weight and time.
- Isotropic
- A material with the same properties in every direction; SLA and SLS parts are more isotropic than FDM.
- Izod impact strength
- The energy needed to break a notched specimen with a pendulum strike (kJ/m²).
L
- Layer thickness
- The height of each printed layer (µm); thinner layers give smoother surfaces but take longer.
- LCD / MSLA
- A resin printing method that cures a whole layer at once using an LCD screen mask. Details →
- Lost-wax casting
- A precision casting method where the pattern is burned out in a plaster mold and replaced with metal. Details →
M
- Manifold
- A closed, watertight and valid 3D model body; required for printing. Details →
- MFI (melt flow index)
- The amount of polymer that flows in 10 minutes at a given temperature and load (g/10 min); indicates flowability.
- MJF
- Multi Jet Fusion; HP's technology that jets agents onto a powder layer and fuses it with infrared heat. Details →
N
- Nozzle
- The heated tip that molten filament comes out of; typical diameter 0.4 mm.
- Nylon (PA)
- Polyamide; a tough, wear-resistant engineering plastic. PA6, PA11 and PA12 are common types. Details →
O
- Overhang
- A surface extending beyond the layer below; overhangs flatter than 45° from horizontal usually need support. Details →
P
- PEEK
- Polyether ether ketone; the top class of polymers with high temperature and chemical resistance. Details →
- PEI / ULTEM
- Polyetherimide; a flame-retardant high-performance polymer used in aerospace. Details →
- PETG
- Glycol-modified PET; a durable, easy-to-print filament resistant to water and chemicals. Details →
- PLA
- Polylactic acid; the plant-based, easiest to print and most economical filament. Details →
- PolyJet
- A technology that jets and cures photopolymer droplets; capable of full-color and multi-material printing. Details →
- Powder bed fusion
- An additive manufacturing family where powder layers are selectively fused by laser or heat. Details →
- Print orientation
- The part's position relative to the bed; directly affects strength, surface quality, supports and time. Details →
- Prototype
- The first example of a product, made to test its form, fit or function.
- PVA
- A water-soluble support filament. Details →
R
S
- SAF
- Selective Absorption Fusion; fuses powder with a single absorbing fluid and infrared heat. Details →
- Shore hardness
- A hardness scale for flexible materials (A and D scales); 95A TPU is harder than a 30A rubber-like material. Details →
- Sintering
- Heating powder below its melting point so the particles fuse together.
- SLA
- Stereolithography; the first commercial 3D printing technology, curing liquid resin layer by layer with a laser. Details →
- Slicer
- Software that slices a 3D model into layers and generates G-code for the printer.
- SLS
- Selective laser sintering; a technology that fuses nylon powder with a laser and needs no supports. Details →
- STEP
- A dimensioned, editable solid model file format; ideal for engineering changes. Details →
- Stiffness
- A material's resistance to deformation under load; expressed by its modulus.
- STL
- The most common 3D printing file format, describing a surface with triangles. Details →
- Stringing
- Fine threads left by the nozzle while traveling in FDM.
- Support structure
- A temporary structure that holds overhangs and bridges during printing and is removed afterwards.
T
- Tensile strength
- The highest tensile stress a material can withstand before breaking (MPa).
- Tolerance
- The accepted deviation range of a dimension (e.g. ±0.3 mm). Details →
- Topology optimization
- A software method for finding the lightest geometry that carries the loads; well suited to additive manufacturing.
- TPU
- Thermoplastic polyurethane; a flexible, abrasion-resistant filament that stretches like rubber. Details →
U
- UV resistance
- A material's resistance to degradation from ultraviolet sunlight. Details →
V
- Voxel
- A three-dimensional pixel; in technologies such as PolyJet, color and material can be assigned per voxel.
W
Z
- Z-axis strength
- The strength of the bond between layers in FDM parts; usually lower than XY strength.
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