laser
Science & Engineering abbreviation · Physics
| Stands for | Light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation |
|---|---|
| Categories | Science & Engineering |
laser stands for Light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation, a physics abbreviation.
Device that produces a narrow, intense beam of light of a single color in which the waves march in step. Lasers read barcodes and discs, carry internet traffic through fiber, cut metal, correct eyesight, measure distances, play light shows and point at presentation slides.
Example: Never look into the beam of a Class 3B or Class 4 laser, even briefly.
Usage notes
Theodore Maiman built the first working laser, a flash-pumped ruby crystal, at Hughes Research Laboratories on May 16, 1960. Gordon Gould coined the acronym in 1957, building on Einstein's 1917 theory of stimulated emission and on the microwave maser. The word is now written in lowercase as an ordinary noun, and "lase" became a back-formed verb.
Related abbreviations
More physics abbreviations
- HEP – High-energy physics
- HF – High frequency
- IR – Infrared
- ITER – International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor
- kB – Boltzmann constant
- KE – Kinetic energy
- LHC – Large Hadron Collider
- lidar – Light detection and ranging
- LIGO – Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory
- maser – Microwave amplification by stimulated emission of radiation
- MHD – Magnetohydrodynamics
- NA – Avogadro constant