Laser
hideA laser is a device that emits light (electromagnetic radiation) through a process called stimulated emission. The term laser is an acronym for light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation. Laser light is usually spatially coherent, which means that the light either is emitted in a narrow, low-divergence beam, or can be converted into one with the help of optical components such as lenses. Typically, lasers are thought of as emitting light with a narrow wavelength spectrum ("monochromatic" light). This is not true of all lasers, however: some emit light with a broad spectrum, while others emit light at multiple distinct wavelengths simultaneously. The coherence of typical laser emission is distinctive. Most other light sources emit incoherent light, which has a phase that varies randomly with time and position.
For more information about Laser, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
News tagged with laser
Scientists Generate Black Hole Radiation in the Lab
15 hours ago |
4.4 / 5 (17) |
3
(PhysOrg.com) -- Due to their violent nature and long distance from Earth, black holes and their surroundings are very difficult to study. Currently, the main method to observe a black hole is to use an X-ray ...
Using lasers to cool and manipulate molecules
18 hours ago |
5 / 5 (7) |
0
(PhysOrg.com) -- "For years, we have been using laser cooling to trap and manipulate atoms," David DeMille tells PhysOrg.com. "This has been very useful for both basic science and many applications. Recent ...
Research is shattering traditioinal notions of laser limits
8 hours ago |
5 / 5 (2) |
1
Air Force Office of Scientific Research and National Science Foundation-funded professor, Dr. Xiang Zhang has demonstrated at the University of California, Berkeley the world's smallest semiconductor laser, ...
Fine-tuned: A wholly new approach to tuning a laser's frequency
Dec 04, 2009 |
4.4 / 5 (9) |
2
(PhysOrg.com) -- For more than 30 years, scientists have been trying to harness the power of terahertz radiation. Tucked between microwaves and infrared rays on the electromagnetic spectrum, terahertz rays ...
Lasers used to make first boron-nitride nanotube yarn (w/ Video)
Nanotechnology / Nanomaterials
Dec 02, 2009 |
4.8 / 5 (13) |
2
(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers have used lasers to create the first practical macroscopic yarns from boron nitride fibers, opening the door for an array of applications, from radiation-shielded spacecraft to ...
Researchers create 'synthetic magnetic fields' for neutral atoms
Dec 02, 2009 |
4.9 / 5 (15) |
2
(PhysOrg.com) -- Achieving an important new capability in ultracold atomic gases, researchers at the Joint Quantum Institute, a collaboration of the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the University ...
Researchers demonstrate 100-watt-level mid-infrared lasers
Dec 01, 2009 |
4.7 / 5 (12) |
0
Northwestern University researchers have achieved a breakthrough in quantum cascade laser output power, delivering 120 watts from a single device at room temperature.
New laser -- it's a gas, gas, gas... sensor
Dec 04, 2009 |
4.8 / 5 (4) |
0
(PhysOrg.com) -- A new generation of optical sensors is enabling the development of robust, long-lasting, lighting-fast trace gas detectors for use in a wide range of industrial, security and domestic applications.
Electromagnetic fields as cutting tools
Dec 01, 2009 |
4.7 / 5 (20) |
13
(PhysOrg.com) -- The bodywork on motor vehicles must be sufficiently stable, but processing the high-strength steels involved -- for example punching holes in them -- can prove something of a challenge. A new steel-cutting ...
I see your pain
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Dec 03, 2009 |
4.5 / 5 (2) |
1
(PhysOrg.com) -- How can some sportsmen and women, in the heat of the moment, play on through pain that would floor anyone else? Bert Trautmann, the Manchester City goalkeeper, famously played on through to ...
Engineering professor creates mobile lab for testing bridges
Dec 02, 2009 |
not rated yet |
0
(PhysOrg.com) -- Civil engineering students at the University of Rhode Island will soon take to the roadways to apply what they have learned in the classroom in real-world analyses of bridges, buildings and ...
