This is a list of laser types, their operational

wavelength In physics, the wavelength is the spatial period of a periodic wave—the distance over which the wave's shape repeats. It is the distance between consecutive corresponding points of the same phase on the wave, such as two adjacent crests, tr ...

s, and their

applications Application may refer to: Mathematics and computing * Application software, computer software designed to help the user to perform specific tasks ** Application layer, an abstraction layer that specifies protocols and interface methods used in a c ...

. Thousands of kinds of

laser A laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of electromagnetic radiation. The word "laser" is an acronym for "light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation". The ...

are known, but most of them are used only for specialized research.

Overview

Gas lasers

Chemical lasers

Used as

directed-energy weapon A directed-energy weapon (DEW) is a ranged weapon that damages its target with highly focused energy without a solid projectile, including lasers, microwaves, particle beams, and sound beams. Potential applications of this technology include w ...

Dye lasers

Metal-vapor lasers

Solid-state lasers

Semiconductor lasers

Other types of lasers

Notes

Further references

*Silfvast, William T. ''Laser fundamentals'', Cambridge University Press, 2004. *Weber, Marvin J. ''Handbook of laser wavelengths'', CRC Press, 1999. {{DEFAULTSORT:Laser Types