What is Laser
“Laser,” which stands for “Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation.” It refers to the amplification of light produced by stimulating atoms, causing electrons to transition and emit radiation, resulting in a coherent beam of enhanced photons. Unlike ordinary light, the radiation emitted by a laser has the same phase, frequency, and direction of vibration.
Who invented the Laser
In May 1960, Theodore Maiman successfully built the world’s first operational ruby laser with a wavelength of 0.6943 microns. He coated the ends of a 1 cm diameter, 2 cm long ruby rod with silver mirrors, leaving a small hole on one end to allow the laser to emit. He placed the ruby crystal inside a helical xenon flashlamp and then positioned them within a highly reflective cylindrical cavity, producing a coherent pulsed laser beam.
However, the theoretical groundwork for the laser was laid by several scientists, most notably Albert Einstein, who introduced the concept of stimulated emission—the fundamental principle behind laser operation. Other key contributors include Charles Townes and Arthur Schawlow, who developed the maser (a microwave precursor to the laser) and wrote the first detailed proposal for a visible-light laser.
So while Maiman built the first laser, it was the result of many scientific advances over several decades.
First Laser
The world’s first laser was a ruby laser, and it was only about the size of a hand. Its basic structure included the three essential components of laser: the lasing medium, the excitation source, and the optical resonator. In the ruby laser, the lasing medium was a ruby crystal, the excitation source was a flash lamp, and the resonator consisted of two mirrors at both ends of the ruby crystal. The working principle of the ruby laser is that the light emitted by the flash lamp excited a population inversion in the particles within the ruby crystal, causing the crystal rod to generate laser light, which was amplified by the resonator to produce a laser beam.
Laser invention history & When was the laser made
As a groundbreaking technology, laser has found widespread application in various fields since its inception. From early scientific experiments to its critical role today in communications, medicine, industry, and consumer electronics, the impact of lasers is undeniable. As technology continues to advance, the performance and application areas of lasers keep expanding, offering even more possibilities for future scientific exploration, innovation, and societal progress. The history of lasers is not only a story of technological evolution but also a testament to humanity’s relentless pursuit of pushing the boundaries of physics, inspiring us with boundless anticipation for future technologies.