ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Thermal transfer printing

Okay, kiddo, thermal transfer printing is kind of like using a special hot stamp to put pictures or words onto paper.

You know when we use crayons and draw on paper? We're putting colors onto the paper using our hands. But with thermal transfer printing, a machine is doing the work. It uses a special ribbon-like material called a "thermal transfer ribbon" that is coated with ink on one side.

When the machine heats up, it melts the ink on the ribbon, and transfers it onto special paper. This paper is different from regular paper – it's kind of like a heat-sensitive sticker. When the ink from the ribbon touches the sticker paper and cools down, it stays there permanently.

So, thermal transfer printing is like using a special hot stamp to put colored pictures or words onto sticker paper. It's a cool way to make labels, barcodes, and other things that need to be printed out quickly and accurately.