Lasers are a unique form of light emissions that have gained a reputation for enhancing cutting edge technology through scientific experiments. But what is a laser, and why is laser light so much more powerful than conventional incandescent light?
Features
The word laser began as an acronym that stands for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation. Lasers emit a concentrated, coherent beam of synchronized light waves that travel in a tight, condensed beam without a significant level of diffusion or deterioration over much longer distances than conventional light is capable of. The ability of laser light to stay in a condensed, regular pattern is due to the synchronization of its photons, which are all emitted in the same wavelength and phase. Another term for a laser is an optical maser.
Function
Laser light is created through the stimulation of a substance until its atoms are sent into a high energy state. This is accomplished by the bombardment with photons so that the atoms of the substance continually absorb photons and then emit them in a precise wavelength according to the difference in energy between the atom's high and low energy states. When more atoms of the substance have been elevated to high energy states than their low energy counterparts, an inverted population is created in which the energized atoms emit a steady stream of synchronized photons as long as they continue to be bombarded.
Types
Lasers vary in size from the small beams encapsulated in pen-sized emitters to very large lasers that can take up an entire room. The substance used to create laser light can vary, and ranges from ruby rods, as were used in the first lasers, to various liquids or gases contained in the laser's resonant chamber. The substance used to cause laser emissions directly relates to the laser's color.
Significance
The light emitted from a laser is essentially a highly concentrated group of photons that travel in the exact same speed and direction. Because of this concentration and consistency, the sharply focused beam is useful for heating, cutting, range finding, communications, and targeting, to name only a few applications. More recently, lasers have been implemented in many surgical operations, allowing for bloodless surgeries, use in eye surgery, and dental applications.
Theories/Speculation
The extreme focus of laser light has allowed for speculation on a wide variety of its potential uses, the most prominent of which might be laser weaponry. Although laser weapons are not yet commonplace, the United States military has developed lasers with the intention of using them to intercept Inter-Continental Ballistic Missiles (ICBM's) in the event of a nuclear assault. Because of the instant and permanent blindness that all but the lowest powered lasers cause when directed into the human eye, the use of lasers as a nonlethal weapon has also been considered, but the moral implications of such use have thus far prohibited the idea from being implemented on the battlefield.
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