RA_Pierce : powering it is no problem.. i have intense knowledge of electronics... the heat problem can be eliminated by having a small enclosed heat sink having water flow through it... but 2mw as you said, is probably too strong. thanks.. i will consider a 700mw...
However, what i had in mind, was to conditionally power the diode or have a PIC chip determine how long the diode needs to stay on forfor a particular material. For wood, the diode would receive limited power, but for something like a stone, it would receive full power. I think if i play around with the amount of time the laser stays at one point, and the amount of power it receives... I could create a well designed system which can take a wide range of materials...
RA_Pierce : If I power the 2watt laser for 1/4 of a second on 1 point, on wood (10mm MDF), would it still penetrate all the way through?