Laser

Application
Jessie and Mark

Laser Application
Definition : applications involving laser devices

Lasers are sources of light with

very special properties. For that
reasons, there is a great variety of
laser applications.

Laser
Applicatio
ns in

Technology

Laser Microscopes and setups for coherence

tomography provide images e.g. of biological
samples with very high resolution, often in three
dimensions. It is also possible to realize functional
imaging.
Optical sampling is a technique applied for the
characterization of fast electronic microcircuits,
microwave photonics, terahertz science, etc.
Fiber-optic sensors, often probed with laser light,
allow for the distributed measurement of
temperature, stress, and other quantities.

Laser
Applicatio
ns in

Technology

Laser cooling allows to cool clouds of atoms or ions

to extremely low temperatures, with applications
in fundamental research as well as for industrial
purposes.
Laser guide stars are used in astronomical
observatories in combination with adaptive optics
for atmospheric correction.

Laser
Applicatio
ns in

Medicine

The highly collimated beam of a laser can be

further focused to a microscopic dot of extremely
high energy density. This makes it useful as a
cutting and cauterizing instrument. Lasers are
used for photocoagulation of the retina to halt
retinal hemorrhaging and for the tacking of retinal
tears. Higher power lasers are used after cataract
surgery if the supportive membrane surrounding
the implanted lens becomes milky. Lasers have
been used to make incisions half a micron wide,
compared to about 80 microns for the diameter of
a human hair.

Laser
Applicatio
ns in

Medicine

There are many medical applications,

e.g. in eye surgery, vision correction
(LASIK), dentistry, dermatology, cosmetic
treatment (tattoo removal, hair removal),
prostate surgery, and other types of
surgery. Very different types of lasers are
required, depending on the optical
wavelength, output power, pulse format,
etc.

Laser
Applicatio
ns in

Industry

Lasers are widely used in manufacturing, e.g. for

cutting, welding, soldering, surface treatment,
marking, micromachining, pulsed laser deposition,
lithography, alignment, etc. In most cases,
relatively high optical intensities are applied to a
small spot, leading to intense heating, possibly
evaporation and plasma generation. Essential
aspects are the high spatial coherence of laser
light, allowing for strong focusing, and often also
the potential for generating intense pulse.

Laser
Applicatio
ns in

Industry

Lasers are widely used in optical

metrology, e.g. for extremely precise
position measurements with
interferometers, for long-distance range
finding and navigation. Also, lasers allow
for extremely precise time measurements
and are therefore essential ingredient of
optical clocks which will soon outperform
the currently used atomic cesium clocks.