So wait, 50 years ago, Raytheon made the very first laser... then last week they showed off a laser that could destroy planes? Interesting...
So wait, 50 years ago, Raytheon made the very first laser... then last week they showed off a laser that could destroy planes? Interesting...
Hughes (Maiman) made the first laser. One could say that Maiman's first laser was the prototype for the Hughes Model 200 introduced in April 1962. The only improvements in the Model 200 were dielectric coatings on a longer rod. The laser above was Raytheon's prototype for the first commercial laser.
A few days ago I found this document called NASA Facts, all about lasers in 1966 and including the pictures of the "Missing Link" laser above. It's a poster for the classroom, with lines indicating where to cut to put the pages into a 3-ring binder. Five dollars for the perfect backdrop for display of this stately old prototype!
I build prototypes for a living. Someone gets an idea and you just have to build it to see. You make guesses on parts, modify some after you get them, drill here, file there, make it work, do the demo and on to the next one. Before the demo, they're super valuable. Five minutes after the show they're worthless. Pictures are taken and the hardware's tossed in a box or cabinet, probably to soon after have parts harvested for further prototypes. To find one this early of such an important invention, 50 years and 3 scrap sales downstream is truly amazing.
Wow Bob. Yet again, such a superb find and a very interesting read.
Thanks for posting.
Jem
Quote: "There is a theory which states that if ever, for any reason, anyone discovers what exactly the Universe is for and why it is here it will instantly disappear and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable. There is another that states that this has already happened.”... Douglas Adams 1952 - 2001