Sixty years ago this month, Theodore H. Maiman, a physicist at Hughes Research Laboratories in Malibu, Calif., constructed the first laser using a cylinder of synthetic ruby and photographic flash lamps. There have been many milestones in the last six decades. In honor of this breakthrough, Photonics Media will be running periodic coverage throughout the month.EMMETT WARREN, NEWS EDITOR [email protected]PITTSFIELD, Mass., May 29, 2020 — As the world celebrates the 60th anniversary of the laser, Photonics Media takes a look back at how the technology has been displayed in popular culture over the last 60 years. Some might be surprised that the first reference to a direct-energy weapon came much earlier, in 1897. H.G. Wells wrote of the Martians in his novel The War of the Worlds: “In some way they are able to generate an intense heat in a chamber of practically absolute non-conductivity. This intense heat they project in a parallel beam against any object they choose, by means of a polished parabolic mirror...Read full articleRelated content from Photonics MediaARTICLESDynamic Beam Laser to Push Limits of Materials ProcessingLaser experts from Germany and Israel are testing a laser for industrial use at the Fraunhofer Institute for Material and Beam Technology IWS. The laser is part of the Saxon-Israeli research project...Photonics Spectra October 2021 IssuePHOQUSING Project Yields Largest Photonic Processor to DateAs part of the European Union (EU) funded PHOQUSING project, quantum technology startup company QuiX Quantum has created what is reportedly the largest quantum photonic processor to date, compatible...Photonics.com 6/16/2022AIM Photonics Receives Approval for $27.5M in FundingThe New York State Photonics board of directors approved a proposal for the allocation of $27.5 million to fund the AIM Photonics Test, Assembly, and Packaging (TAP) Facility in Rochester, N.Y. The...Photonics Spectra May 2023 IssueQuantitative Phase Imaging, Biophotonics Pioneer Gabriel Popescu DiesGabriel Popescu, the William L. Everitt Distinguished Professor in Electrical and Computer Engineering in the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Grainger College of Engineering, died June 16. ...Photonics.com 6/21/2022PRODUCTSAutomated Wafer-level PIC TestOne of the remaining frontiers in photonics assembly and test is volume-capable, mixed-signal electro-optical testing. ficonTEC’s new Wafer-level Test (WLT) product line is specially designed...Promoted Content September 2021 IssueSpecialty Fiber Fused Silica PreformsOptical fibers are among the hidden champions of our time. Be it as a communication fiber for the internet or as a power transmission fiber in industrial material processing or minimally invasive...Promoted Content November 2022 IssueWe Make Your Laser for Medical ApplicationsThe FISBA READYBeam™ is our answer to customers' increasing demand for a compact, powerful, and reliable multicolor laser source that can be easily integrated into existing set-ups. The...Promoted Content September 2022 IssuePHOTONICS HANDBOOK ARTICLESExcimer Lasers: Photonic Stamps with Micron Resolution: Representing today’s most cost-effective and dependable UV lasers, excimer lasers enable disruptive innovation in various growth industries.Excimers are pulsed gas lasers that deliver high output power and pulse energies in the ultraviolet and deep-ultraviolet wavelengths. This enables them to power applications that cannot be supported...Photonics HandbookCO2 Lasers: The Industrial Workhorse: Four decades ago, the first industrial use of lasers was for drilling through diamonds or wire draw dies. From that beginning the laser has become an integral part of the conventional technology in many production plants. In the forefront of that revolution has been the CO2 laser, today a varied and sophisticated tool.In the three decades since its introduction, the CO2 laser has become the workhorse of industrial lasers. Today it is available in a range of designs and sizes with output powers of 20 kW and more....Photonics HandbookLaser Applications TablesPhotonics HandbookSilicon Photonics: Light Is the Ultimate Medium for High-Speed Communications: Thanks to innovations with heterogeneous material integration and multiphotonic layer stacking, silicon photonics will drive optical solutions to high volumes and low costs.Silicon photonics is widely considered a key enabling technology for further development of optical interconnect solutions needed to address growing traffic on the internet. From the first submarine...Photonics HandbookWEBINARSHow Current Trends in Optics Are Lighting the Path to Turn Science Fiction into Science FactVisionary science fiction books and movies have been accurately predicting future innovations for years! DeGroote Nelson explores science fiction prophecies that have become reality thanks to optics...Photonics.com 1/20/2021Understanding the Modulation Transfer Function and Beginning the Lens Selection ProcessStuart Singer of Schneider Optics, Inc. discusses how to understand the modulation transfer function (MTF) with respect to lens performance, while avoiding complex math such as fast Fourier...Photonics.com 3/21/2023OLED Display Technology Update and ForecastBarry Young, CEO of the OLED Association and an authority on the technology, presents a broad look at display applications utilizing OLEDs. In 2015, OLED displays had revenues of US$13.5b and it is...Photonics.com 5/12/2016How to Choose or Custom-Design the Right Machine Vision Lens for Your ApplicationAlthough commonly overlooked, a lens is the first component in the composition of a vision system. Using a low-quality lens will result in poor image quality, even if the lens is paired with hardware...Photonics.com 7/21/2021PHOTONICS DICTIONARY TERMSmattA term used to describe a nondirectionally diffusing surface that, when illuminated, appears equally bright from all angles. An example of this kind of surface is the screen used for the forward...EDU.photonics.com 9/8/2009ophthalmic photographyThe methods and techniques used to obtain medical photographs of the human eye. To photograph the exterior of the eye, conventional still photographic equipment and procedures are used. Similarly, in...EDU.photonics.com 9/8/2009holographic cinematographyA technique used to create a series of interrelated holographic images that give an appearance of motion when projected in sequence. A flashing laser is used in both the recording and projecting of...EDU.photonics.com 9/8/2009cinemicrographyCinematography performed with the use of a microscope to film the actions of microscopic specimens.EDU.photonics.com 9/8/2009MEDIAPhotonics on the Showroom Floor and in the Lab - LIGHT MATTERS 02.2018On this month's episode of Light Matters, we take you on a brief tour of the Higgins Laboratories at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI). Quinsigamond Community College and WPI received a $4M grant...Photonics.com 2/21/2018Supporting the Photonics Industry from the Laboratory - LIGHT MATTERS 01.2018On this month's episode of Light Matters, we take you to central Massachusetts as Worcester Polytechnic Institute and Quinsigamond Community College take on a comprehensive joint photonics laboratory...Photonics.com 1/18/2018Optics and Photonics at the Hub of the Industry - LIGHT MATTERS 10.2017Tune into this month's edition of Light Matters for some of the highlights from Optifab 2017, as distributors and buyers from all over the world met in the photonics industry hub of Rochester, New...Photonics.com 10/26/2017'Green' Initiatives - LIGHT MATTERS 12/2017On this month's episode of Light Matters, we introduce you to a green energy company that is transforming China's national treasure — the giant panda — into panda-shaped solar farms. We also bring...Photonics.com 12/15/2017PHOTONICS BUYERS' GUIDE CATEGORIESPhotonic Integrated CircuitsFiber Sensing SystemsSilicon CrystalsFiber Optic GyroscopesA fiber optic gyroscope is an instrument to measure angular rotation, based on the principle that the application of force will alter the wavelength of light as it travels in one direction or the...COMPANIESPower Technology Inc.At Power Technology, Inc., we have been a driving force in the laser industry for over fifty years. Since 1969, we have been designing, developing, and manufacturing a comprehensive range of laser...Photonics Buyers' GuideSPIEPhotonics Buyers' Guide