Nd:YAG laser

A solid-state laser whose gain medium is yttrium aluminum garnet doped with neodymium ions. Its principal emission wavelength is 1,064 nanometers, in the near infrared.

Yttrium aluminum garnet: A synthetic crystalline garnet, Y₃Al₅O₁₂, used as a host material for optical dopants. This crystal lattice hosts the neodymium ions that provide the laser’s gain.
Laser cutting: A manufacturing process that uses a focused laser beam to cut material. High-power Nd:YAG beams can cut metals and other materials.
Ruby laser: A solid-state laser that uses chromium-doped sapphire and emits red light near 694 nanometers. Its three-level operation requires more pumping than Nd:YAG’s four-level transition.
Theodore Maiman: An American physicist who built the first working laser, a ruby laser, in 1960. His demonstration established the laser technology that Nd:YAG research soon extended.
Neodymium: A rare-earth element whose ions produce characteristic optical transitions in crystals and glasses. Neodymium ions supply the energy levels responsible for amplification.
Laser welding: A joining process that melts and fuses materials using concentrated laser energy. Its focused beam and pulsed or continuous output suit precision welding.
Nd:glass laser: A solid-state laser whose gain medium is glass doped with neodymium ions. Nd:glass supports large, energetic amplifiers, while crystalline Nd:YAG offers better thermal conductivity.
J. E. Geusic: An American physicist associated with the early development of neodymium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet lasers. Geusic and colleagues reported an early Nd:YAG laser in 1964.
Four-level laser: A laser scheme in which the lower laser level lies above the ground state, easing population inversion. Nd:YAG’s 1,064-nanometer transition operates as a four-level laser.
Laser rangefinder: An instrument that measures distance from the travel time or phase of reflected laser light. Compact Nd:YAG sources have been used in rangefinders, often at eye-safer converted wavelengths.

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