Bell Labs 1958: Arthur
L. Schawlow and Charles
Hard. Townes published "Infrared and Optical Masers" in the American
Physical Society's Physical Review. The paper describes the basic principles
of the laser, initiating this new scientific field.
Physicist Theodore
Harold Maiman invented the first operable laser.
While employed at Hughes
Research Laboratories as a section head in 1960, he developed, demonstrated,
and patented a laser using a pink ruby medium, for which he gained worldwide
recognition.
The first successfully optical
laser constructed by Maiman (1960), consisted of a ruby crystal surrounded
by a helicoidal flash tube enclosed within a polished aluminum cylindrical
cavity cooled by forced air. The ruby cylinder forms a Fabry-Perot cavity
by optically polishing the ends to be parallel to within a third of a wavelength
of light. Each end was coated with evaporated silver, one end was made
less reflective to allow some radiation to escape as a beam.
Arthur
L. Schawlow 1921 - 1999
Charles Townes' invention
of the maser, a device that amplifies electromagnetic waves, created a
means for the sensitive reception of communications and for precise navigation.
1958: Arthur L. Schawlow
and Charles Hard.
Townes invent the laser, then publish "Infrared and Optical
Masers" in the American
Physical Society's Physical Review. The paper describes the basic principles
of the laser, initiating this new scientific field.
Physicist Theodore
Harold Maiman invented the first operable laser.
While employed at Hughes
Research Laboratories as a section head in 1960, he developed, demonstrated,
and patented a laser using a pink ruby medium, for which he gained worldwide
recognition.
The first successfully optical
laser constructed by Maiman (1960), consisted of a ruby crystal surrounded
by a helicoidal flash tube enclosed within a polished aluminum cylindrical
cavity cooled by forced air. The ruby cylinder forms a Fabry-Perot cavity
by optically polishing the ends to be parallel to within a third of a wavelength
of light. Each end was coated with evaporated silver, one end was made
less reflective to allow some radiation to escape as a beam.
Photo-pumped by a fast discharge
flash-lamp, the first ruby lasers operated in pulsed mode for reasons of
heat dissipation and the need for high pumping powers. Nelson and Boyle
(1962) constructed a continuous lasing ruby by replacing the flash lamp
with an arclamp.
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