Laser is an acronym of "Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation"

Stimulated Emission: 1917
Albert Einstein first proposed the process that makes lasers possible called "Stimulated Emission."

Holography: 1947
Gabor developed the theory of holography, that requires laser light for its realization. He received the 1971 Nobel Prize in Physics for this work.

Maser: 1954
The first papers about the maser were published in 1954 as a result of investigations carried out simultaneously and independently by Townes and his coworkers at Columbia University in New York and by Basov and Prokhorov at the Lebedev Institute in Moscow. Their work continued throughout the '60s and the '70s. For this work they were awarded the 1964 Nobel Prize in Physics.

Laser: 1958
The optical maser or the laser dates from 1958, when the possibilities of applying the maser principle in the optical region were analyzed by Schawlow and Townes as well as in the Lebedev Institute. Laser spectroscopy was developed by Schawlow and his co-workers at Stanford University and, around the same time, Bloembergen and his coworkers developed nonlinear optics which is a very special application of laserspectroscopy. For this they were awarded the 1981 Nobel Prize in Physics.

Ruby Laser: 1960
The first laser was operating in 1960. It was a ruby laser generating strong pulses of red light.

Semiconductor: 1963
Alferov and Kroemer proposed in 1963, independently of each other, the principle for semiconductor heterostructures to be used later in semiconductor laser which today, by far, is the most common laser. For this work they were awarded the 2000 Nobel Prize in Physics.

Corning Glass: 1970
Optic fiber made of corning glass has such low losses that telephone calls and telecommunication can be transferred for kilometers with the help of laser light.

Laser Cooling: 1980
In the '80s Chu, Cohen-Tannoudji and Phillips worked with laser cooling of atoms. For this work they were awarded the 1997 Nobel Prize in Physics.


The physicist Albert Einstein had described the theory of stimulated emission as early as 1917, but it would still take 30 years before engineers began to utilize this principle for practical purposes. Scientists were amazed by this technical breakthrough but laser technology itself had no real purpose. This is not exceptional, discoveries may need time before being put to use. Today laser is used in communication, industry, medicine, and environmental care and research. Laser has become one of the most powerful tools for scientists in physics, chemistry, biology and medicine throughout the world. One area that is considered to be very interesting is in the different methods to cool and capture atoms by using laser. We don't know yet what this knowledge and technology will be used for in the future, but we do know that future applications will be based on today's research.


What is the Laser?

There are many different types of lasers. Two main groups stand out:

1. High Power (Medical) Lasers: they are used to cut, coagulate and evaporate tissues. These lasers are often called surgical lasers because they can replace the scalpel of the surgeon.

2. Low Level Lasers: they can be used for the stimulation of cell function. They are also called bio-stimulating lasers or Low Intensity Lasers. Their biological effect is not thermal, as is the case with surgical lasers.


Conditions that respond well to Low Level Laser Therapy (LLLT): There are more than 50 positive Double Bliind Low Level Laser Therapy (LLLT) Studies that show clear evidence that LLLT is highly effective for the following conditions:

How the Laser Works

Low-level light therapy uses cold laser light energy and/or LEDs (Light Emitting Diode) to direct bio-stimulating light energy to the body’s cells without injuring or damaging them in any way. Low-level lasers supply energy to the body in the form of non-thermal photons of light. The optimal window of energy lies between 600-900 nm.

Photonic energy (electromagnetic/light energy) is absorbed by the photo acceptor sites (receptors) on the cell membrane, triggering a secondary messenger to initiate intracellular signals that initiate, inhibit or accelerate biological processes such as wound healing, inflammation, or reduction of pain and cell growth.

When used at specific rates, the laser optimizes the immune responses of the tissues. This has both anti-inflammatory and immuno-stimulative effects . It is a scientific fact that light transmitted to the blood in this way has positive effects throughout the whole body, supplying vital oxygen and energy to every cell.

Laser: The Aladdin's Lamp of the 20^th Century?

It was in the year in 1966. Dr. Endre Mester, professor of surgery at the Semmelweis Hospital in Budapest, received a new and an exciting device: the Ruby laser. He had been given funds in order to research if light from the laser could be used to combat cancer. He conducted a series of experiments, first on cell cultures, then on rats, in order to ascertain that laser light--this new and unknown type of light--would not give rise to dangerous or unexpected results. He removed (shaved) the fur from the back of a number of rats. He then applied different dosages of laser lights to half of the shaved area. The other half was left untreated, for comparison reasons. With small light dosages nothing happened. With larger dosages the fur grew back faster on the treated half: the laser light had a stimulating affect! With even larger dosages this stimulating effect disappeared, and with even higher dosages the opposite effect occurred: the fur on the untreated half re-grew faster. An inhibitory effect was obtained.

The research group under Dr. Mester conducted several experiments. With a new group of rats a surgical wound was created on each side of the body. Only one wound was treated with laser light, the other wound was left untreated. A certain dosage of laser light stimulated wound healing, while a significantly higher dosage of laser light proved to inhibit wound healing. The results of this research were published in 1967 in Hungary, but remained largely unnoticed in the Western countries.

Laser is an acronym of "Light Amplification
by Stimulated Emission of Radiation"