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posted by janrinok on Sunday November 13 2016, @08:42AM   Printer-friendly
from the bright-idea dept.

Working with physicists from the University of Rome, a team led by Professor Cordt Zollfrank from the Technical University of Munich (TUM) built the first controllable random laser based on cellulose paper in Straubing. The team thereby showed how naturally occurring structures can be adapted for technical applications. Hence, materials no longer need to be artificially outfitted with disordered structures, utilizing naturally occurring ones instead.
...
Two components are necessary for a laser: First of all, a medium which amplifies light. And secondly, a structure which retains the light in the medium. A classic laser uses mirrors to order and shine light in a single direction in a targeted, uniform fashion.

This also takes place uniformly in the microscopic structure of a random laser, but in different directions. Although the development of the random laser is still in its infancy, in the future it could result in lower-cost production. This is because random lasers have the advantage that they are direction-independent and function with multiple colors, just to name a few benefits.
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However, the light waves can still be controlled despite their random nature, as the team led by Claudio Conti of the Institute for Complex Systems in Rome discovered, with whom Daniel Van Opdenbosch and Cordt Zollfrank collaborated. With the help of a spectrometer, they were able to differentiate the various laser wavelengths generated in the material and localize them separately from one another.

Van Opdenbosch described the procedure: "The test setup used to map the samples consisted of a green laser whose energy could be adjusted, microscope lenses, and a mobile table which allowed the sample to be moved past. That way, our colleagues were able to determine that at different energy levels, different areas of the material radiate different laser waves." In light of this analysis, it is possible to configure the laser in any number of ways and to determine the direction and intensity of its radiation.

This knowledge puts potential practical applications within reach. "Such materials could, for example, be useful as micro-switches or detectors for structural changes," said Van Opdenbosch.


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  • (Score: 3, Funny) by theluggage on Sunday November 13 2016, @07:22PM

    by theluggage (1797) on Sunday November 13 2016, @07:22PM (#426309)

    TFA describes a random laser - totally the wrong type of laser for sharks. I think you'll find that you need a frickin' laser for squaloid compatibility.

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