How to Make a Laser

Last Updated: August 30, 2024 References

The word “laser” is an acronym for “light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation.” The first laser, using a silver-coated ruby cylinder as the resonator, was developed in 1960 at California's Hughes Research Laboratories. ^{[1]
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Research source} Today, lasers are used for purposes ranging from measurement to reading encoded data, and there are several ways to make a laser, depending on your budget and skills.

Part 1

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Understanding How a Laser Works

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1
Provide a source of energy. Lasers work, or “lase,” by stimulating electrons to emit light of a particular wavelength. (This process was first proposed in 1917 by Albert Einstein.) ^{[2]
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Research source} For electrons to emit light, they must first absorb energy to boost them to a higher orbit, then discharge that energy as light when returning to their original orbit. These energy sources are known as “pumps.”
- Small lasers, such as those in CD and DVD players and laser pointers, use electronic circuits to provide electric current to diodes, which serves as the pump.
- Carbon dioxide lasers are pumped with electrical discharges to excite their electrons.
- Excimer lasers get their energy from chemical reactions. ^{[3]
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- Lasers built around crystals or glasses use strong light sources such as arc or flash lamps. ^{[4]
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2
Channel the energy through a gain medium. A gain medium, or active laser medium, amplifies the power of the light given off by the stimulated electrons. ^{[5]
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Research source} Gain media can be any of the following items:
- Semiconductors made of materials such as gallium arsenide, aluminum gallium arsenide, or indium gallium arsenide.
- Crystals such as the ruby cylinder used in the Hughes Laboratories laser. Sapphire and garnet have also been used, as have fibers of optical glass. These glasses and crystals are treated with ions of rare earth elements
- Ceramics, which have also been treated with rare earth ions.
- Liquids, usually dyes, although an infrared laser was produced by using a gin and tonic as the gain medium. Gelatin dessert (Jell-O) has also been used successfully as a gain medium. ^{[6]
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- Gases, such as carbon dioxide, nitrogen, mercury vapor, or a helium-neon mixture. ^{[7]
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- Chemical reactions.
- Electron beams.
- Nuclear materials. A uranium laser was first produced in November, 1960, six months after the first ruby laser. ^{[8]
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3
Set up mirrors to contain the light. These mirrors, or resonators, keep the light within the laser chamber until it builds up to the desired energy level for release, either through a tiny aperture in one of the mirrors or through a lens. ^{[9]
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Research source}
- The simplest resonator setup, the linear resonator, uses two mirrors placed at opposite sides of the laser chamber. It produces a single output beam.
- A more complicated setup, the ring resonator, uses three or more mirrors. It may create a single beam, with the help of an optical isolator, or multiple beams.
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Along with the mirrors, the lens helps concentrate and direct the light so that the gain medium receives as much as possible.

Part 2

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Would a CD writer's diode still burn through things?

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Yes, but it wouldn't be very powerful. Still, don't point it at anybody.

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Can increasing energy make a laser so powerful it can damage the surface on which it is focused?

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It depends on the surface. Most surfaces will not be damaged, such as drywall, metal and tile. Wood will burn with some lasers if the lasers are focused directly on one spot. Plastic, especially thin, black plastic, will burn. Surfaces that are black burn better than other surfaces because black absorbs colors better.

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If I connect a small laser to a wall socket, will it have power?

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No, it will most likely be the same or fry the circuit board or the main driver because of power overload. But it could only take what it needs and be the exact same.

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Tips

To protect your assembled laser, you'll want to keep it in some kind of case, such as an LED flashlight or battery holder, depending on how small your driver circuit is.

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The smaller you concentrate the laser beam, the more powerful it will be, but it will only be effective at the distance you focus it. If you focus the beam at a distance of 1 m, it will only be effective at 1 m. When not using your laser, de-focus its lens until the beam it produces is about the diameter of a ping pong ball.

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Warnings

Do not shine the laser on a reflective surface. A laser is a beam of light and can be reflected the same as an unfocused beam of light, only with greater consequences.

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Always wear goggles rated for the wavelength of the beam of the laser you are working with (in this case, the wavelength of the laser diode). Laser goggles are in the complementary color of the beam: green for a red 650 nm laser, orange-red for a blue 405 nm laser. Do not substitute a welding mask, smoked glass, or sunglasses for laser goggles.

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Do not look into the laser beam or shine it into someone else's eyes. Class IIIb lasers, the kind of laser described in this article, can damage the eye, even when wearing laser goggles. It's also illegal to point lasers of this kind indiscriminately.

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Things You'll Need

Laser kit or separate driver circuit and lens tube/diode assembly
DVD writer or Blu-Ray writer diode (optional)
Soldering iron (if assembling driver circuit)
Solder (if assembling driver circuit)
Screwdriver (if taking apart a DVD writer)
Pliers or tweezers (if taking apart a DVD writer)
Power switch (optional)
Wire spools (to connect diode to driver circuit and driver circuit to power source)
Batteries (at least 6 volts total recommended)

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How to Make a Laser

Steps

Understanding How a Laser Works

Building a Laser

Building a Laser from a Kit

Building a Laser With a Found Diode

Community Q&A

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