The first laser produced from water and light

Scientists have successfully developed a special laser, first appearing in the world - "Water Laser". The type of laser created by interference between light and water waves.

This new laser technology allows researchers to control and operate very easily even in micro-technologies like "Lab on a chip". This technology allows research and experimentation on microscopic cells while also examining the availability of drugs to be tested to produce highly practical results.

So what is water laser?

So how can the team create lasers from water waves? The group must first identify the difficulties that will be encountered.

According to the team from the Technion Institute of Technology in Israel in Haifa, the biggest barrier is that the oscillation frequency of water waves on the surface is much lower than that of light waves, so the generation of laser is not feasible.

To overcome this disadvantage of water waves, the group created a device that uses an optical fiber to provide light for a small droplet of Octane and Water.The fluctuation of water droplets will take place slowly until a sufficient energy source is reached, this light source will interact with the surface wave created by the fluctuation of the droplet.

The fluctuation of water droplets will take place slowly until a sufficient energy source is achieved.

Water laser simulation

"The interaction between light from fiber optics and tiny vibrations of water droplets is like an echo, where the interaction of waves and the surface of waves passing through can help them repeat many times" - The team said. To enhance the efficiency of the interaction between light and water droplets, the team studied and selected materials with high transparency and high viscosity.

The most interesting part of this study is the enhancement of optical fibers to shape water droplets.

With this new technology, laser has 1000 times more control and efficiency than current laser technology and will be useful for cell research in the laboratory if this new technology is completed. good in the future.

The group published the study in Nature Photonics.

Principles of laser generation

According to the basic concepts of quantum physics, when we project a beam of light into a physical medium (the term physics is called the atomic physics system), the light beam will weaken due to being absorbed. collected by the physical environment. The nature of the absorbed process is that light particles (photons) transmit energy that activates the "molecular " material from steady state A to a B state with a higher energy level. Because B is an unstable state, after a certain time, molecules at level B "jump" to level A and while "jumping" it also emits a photon of equal energy. the energy it absorbs, in a "borrow what to pay" way. That is the phenomenon of radiation . However, these radiation photons are not much, because they are proportional to the number of molecules present at level B, but the number of molecules in the B state is always less than the number of molecules in the steady state A. Photographic photons This radiation is released in all directions freely so it is called free radiation.

Water droplet oscillation model that the group built.

When we make photons interact with molecules at high B, catch it back to A earlier and generate photons, photons have energy levels and are equal to the energy levels of the photons of the transmitted light source. for it it is activated radiation.

When creating high-level activation radiation for radiating photons emitted continuously at the highest level, then it is selected and amplified so that they emit in the same direction with the same properties we will obtain the beam. laser light. Thus, the principle of the laser generator is to make the light source on the laser active medium not weakened to continuously activate the material element for the number of molecules at level B is always higher than A, so the number of radiation photons will be generated as much as possible. Then, with special devices, this light source will be selected and amplified to emit a beam of monochromatic light, consisting of light rays of the same direction, whose wavelength is roughly equivalent and has a volume of medium high. That is the laser.

Structure of laser generator, including main parts:

1. Laser active substance: An environment containing active substances capable of emitting laser radiation when activated by an energy source.
2. Feed source: As an energy source to maintain the activity of the laser active environment, keep the active ingredient always in a state with a higher number of elements at level A.
3. Resonance chamber: Includes 1 full reflector and 1 semi-matte mirror(reflectivity from 70% to 99%)

The resonant chamber allows the light source to excite the substance multiple times and the radiation beam will be amplified and selected through the full reflector and translucent mirrors until stable to emit a laser beam.

Laser classification:

Depending on the type of laser active substance, we will obtain the laser with different names:

1. Solid lasers have a solid-state active substance.There are hundreds of categories like Ruby Laser, YAG Laser, Semiconductor Laser, Glass Laser, etc.
2. Liquid lasers have liquid substance active medium.There are 50 different types.Colored liquid actives will give us a color laser, which is very common today.
3. Gas lasers have an active medium in gaseous form.There are also more than a hundred gases used as laser active substances such as CO2 lasers, helium-Neon lasers, Argon lasers, etc.

People also classified according to properties such as: hot lasers such as CO2 laser, Argon) and cold lasers (like He-Ne Laser, Infrared Laser).