Laser Pioneer, Nobel Winner Prokhorov Dies

MOSCOW, Jan. 8 -- Alexander Prokhorov, who won the Nobel Prize in physics in 1964 for work that led to the development of the laser, died early Tuesday in his Moscow apartment, according to the ITAR-Tass news agency. He was 85.

Prokhorov won the Nobel Prize with colleague Nikolai Basov and Charles Townes of the US for work in the field of quantum electronics. The Soviets worked separately from Townes, but their developments were parallel. Townes is credited with developing the first maser in 1953, while Prokhorov and Basov produced a similar device the next year.