system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
[Star Wars] Does an oncoming blaster bolt have measurable surface area, and if so, what would happen if the shot clipped something? Would it get split up into a smaller shot that keeps traveling?
gpt
A blaster bolt is not a laser. It is a streamlined blob of super heated plasma that is contained in a powerful magnetic field. As such, it does indeed have a surface area that is variable depending on the blaster and it's power.

Now when a blaster bolt hits a physical object, the magnetic field collapses, and the plasma disperses. This causes concussive damage from the momentum of the bolt, burning damage from heat of the plasma, and ionic/electronic damage from the collapse of the magnetic field. So in a sense the shot does break up and keep traveling, however because it is plasma, and not a solid shot, it disperses in a short distance losing its potential damage.

Now the exception is when such a bolt hits another strong magnetic field such as a lightsaber blade or a magnetically sealed object. Because of the opposing magnetic field the bolt is deflected but the magnetic sheath of the bolt still remains intact, so it ricochets until it hits a non magnetic field and disperses. Since the fields required to do all this are so powerful and efficient, there is only a small loss of momentum from the Bolt.