lasers find uses in thousands of applications. LASER is the acronym that stands for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation.
in 1960, Theodore Mainan of Hughes Research Labs in California proudly demonstrated the world’s first laser made from a rock of synthetic ruby crystal.
however, it was Albert Einstein who put forward in 1917 the stimulated emission concept that basically states that "under special condition, a light wave interacting with certain substances could stimulate the substance to emit a brand-new light wave, identical to the first wave, resulting in a light of higher intensity than that of the originally inputted light."
a laser beam is a pure monochromatic, single wavelength light. it is an intense beam of either visible, infrared (IR) or ultraviolet (UV) light. it can be extremely powerful, able to cut or weld metals. it has a high coherence. these properties allow lasers to be focused to extremely small spots.
