From Death Ray to Household Appliance: 40th Anniversary of the semi-conductor laser - a celebration from the Optical Society of America and the American Institute of Physics

It's the 40th anniversary of a device that went from science fiction to science fact to something routinely, remarkably useful.

The laser seemed exotic and dangerous in the early 1960s. It was the elaborate death ray that could cut steel---and threaten secret agents as Goldfinger threatened James Bond in the 1964 movie.

But two years before Goldfinger hit the theaters, optics experts were telling their colleagues they could build a far simpler laser that would eventually fit on a tiny chip, and be efficient enough to run with a small battery.

Small device, big impact
Their breakthrough, 40 years ago this month, built the blinking heart of the communication revolution. Coupled with fiber optics, these "semiconductor" lasers transmit the deluge of data on the Internet and in modern telephone systems.

Squeezing lasers onto a chip led to lasers so inexpensive and versatile there may be dozens of lasers in a modern home, at the heart of appliances so reasonably priced we may toss them out if they break.

Semiconductor lasers, also called "diode" lasers, read the bar-coded price on a teenager's new CD, then similar lasers in the teen's CD player read the disk to turn data into music.

Lasers on chips help burn data onto disks, offer measurement tools of microscopic precision and may serve as the light source for other types of lasers that are replacing the surgeon's scalpel.

Who's the inventor?
It's a matter of debate even today as to who can take sole credit for the semiconductor laser. Several scientists have patents for laser development.

In the summer of 1962 researchers from MIT's Lincoln Laboratory told a conference they'd been able to make a light emitting diode---a longer-wavelength version of what we now know as the familiar red LED
---turn almost every bit of energy they pumped in into bright, powerful light.

Some scientists found the claim so outlandish they accused the presenter of breaking basic laws of physics. But other scientists saw the announcement as reinforcing their theories--that the structure of an LED could be the jumping-off point for a simple, efficient laser.

These scientists rushed back to their labs to work on the concept. Today's researchers usually need a very specific market in mind before a company or lab will okay a project. These researchers had green lights from their bosses even though no one was quite sure how the world would use what they were attempting.

Just a couple of months after the Lincoln Lab presentation, teams at four laboratories were reporting functioning diode lasers---two teams at different General Electric research centers, a team at IBM and a group at Lincoln Labs. Within three months of each other, their results appeared in the journals Physical Review Letters and Applied Physics Letters.

What's next?
New generations of laser engineers are working on refinements to make lasers on chips even more useful.

Leading experts on all types of lasers will meet in Orlando from September 29th to October 3rd as the Optical Society of America holds its annual meeting.

Much of their work is at the far frontiers of the field. One technology getting closer to the consumer is the blue laser. The change is much more than cosmetic. Blue lasers beam light at a shorter wavelength than the lasers in present-day CD and DVD players. Shorter wavelengths will allow more data to be crammed onto disks-making possible full-length 3-D movies or business presentations.

"So, Mister Bond, are you prepared to die?...Oh, hey, where'd you get the cool disc player?"
With the next James Bond movie coming soon, you may not see any death rays about to spoil 007's tuxedo-but on the way to the theater you may use dozens of lasers so tiny and reliable you probably won't notice they're there.

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Contact:

Craig Smith
American Institute of Physics
College Park, MD
301-209-3088

Ben Stein
American Institute of Physics
College Park, MD
301-209-3091

Experts:

Russell D. Dupuis, Ph.D.
(second generation laser/LED researcher)
University of Texas at Austin
Phone: (512) 471-0537

Laser pioneers:

Robert Hall Ph.D
(Former General Electric researcher- achieved first functioning semiconductor laser)

Nick Holonyak, Jr. Ph.D
(Former GE researcher-achieved first visible semiconductor laser)
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
217-333-4149

Marshall I. Nathan, Ph.D
(Former IBM researcher. Leader in semiconductor laser development)
University of Minnesota
200 Union St. SE
Minneapolis, MN 55455 USA
Telephone: 612-625-2319, Fax: 4583

Robert Rediker, Ph.D
(Former MIT researcher. Achieved LED breakthrough--basis for semiconductor laser)
617-924-6470