Nasa tests 3D-printed engine part http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-23313921
Is SLM the same as Selective Laser Sintering (SLS)?
Yep, SLM is similar as SLS. I suppose that EOS from Germany can only use SLS designation.
Melting and sintering are both terms of art, and don’t mean the same thing. In sintering, small bits of material weld to one another because the surfaces glue themselves to each other because of heat. In melting, the whole thing should melt.
@Jasper_Janssen But what does “the whole thing” mean in this context where the laser beam only melts one layer at a time? Doesn’t the distinction become meaningless?