Since it was first invented in the 1960s, laser technology has come a long way. Lasers have revolutionized the way we do business in just 50 years, researching the planet around us, manufacturing components, and curing the ill.
So much of what we’ve gotten used to in the last 50 years wouldn’t be possible without lasers. Lasers are invaluable instruments in every aspect of our lives, from an accidental cat toy to the end of all cat toys to the invention of LiDAR to the inauguration of a whole new world of astronomy.
Are you interested in phase plates? Phase plates are translucent optics that convert a directed laser beam’s shape and intensity profile. Here are a few ways in which we use laser technologies in our daily lives.
Scientific Research
The revolution in laser spectroscopy has been carried out due to the availability of narrow linewidth radiation,
Atomic absorption spectrometers help calculate the identification of thin spectral lines. There are many ways, such as audiovisual spectroscopy, multiphoton ionization spectroscopy, etc., to detect weak spectral lines.
The laser reduced the time needed from an hour to minutes for recording Raman Spectrum. The argon-ion laser for Raman spectroscopy is the most widely used laser.
Lasers are used in chemistry as a method for diagnosis and as a way of causing chemical reactions. They also aid in distinguishing an element’s isotopes. Dye lasers, excimer lasers, carbon dioxide lasers, and YAG lasers are lasers widely used in chemical applications.
3D Scanners – LIDAR
Creating a realistic model of an object, body part, building feature, or geographical structure was incredibly costly and time-consuming before 3D scanners,
Today, within minutes, an exact model can be taken and replicated everywhere in the world. A broad range of areas, from dentistry to surveying, to engineering, to aviation, has been significantly enhanced by this capability.
Laser Cutting & Welding
Laser machining equipment has allowed us to manufacture small, reliable parts using conventional cutting and grinding methods that are very difficult to make. In a wide range of industries, especially industries that need very small, specific, durable components, such as space engineering and automotive manufacturing, this has resulted in substantial advances.
Laser welding enables us to produce very accurately, regulated joints that in the past were difficult or impossible to create. For this cause, laser welding has been instrumental in the development of automated assembly lines that have revolutionized production across the globe.
Barcode Readers
Inventories had to be registered manually or in a non-standardized way before the invention of barcodes. The idea of a standardized means of labeling an object is not unique, but there was no way to automatically process these codes until the invention of laser barcode readers.
The laser made it possible and was as groundbreaking as the interstate highway system or the railroads in industrial logistics.
So much of what we’ve gotten used to in the last 50 years wouldn’t be possible without lasers. If you want to buy spiral phase plates for any project idea, you can try Vortex Photonics to produce them for you.