As we have seen, light is made up of 'packets' of electrons that from now on, we shall call 'photons'.
What makes a laser light different from natural light like that from the sun, a light bulb or a fire is found in the 'photons' . In natural light we find that the photons belong to different types or categories, meaning that although all are 'light particles', if we were to measure their height or width, some would have the same wavelength and intensity('identical twins'), others would show different ones and so forth in a multitude of 'sizes and features'. Just like you and me are different in our features.
In a laser light ALL the photons are exactly of the same wavelength, (width), same amplitude (height) and same frequency. They are all clones of one original.
So a beam of natural light is very different from a beam of a Laser. If we were to use an easy example we could compare the beam of natural light with the start of a Marathon including thousands of different runners (different sizes, ages, colors, etc) running with a different pace and at their own stride and speed, while a beam coming from a Laser would be equivalent to a martial parade of thousands of clones, marching at the same pace and stride, wearing the same uniform and, obviously, of the same size.
THIS IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TWO LIGHTS, AND HERE LIES THE REASON WHY A LASER LIGHT INTERACTS WITH LIVING MATTER IN SUCH A SPECIAL WAY.
I will start by reviewing the fact that light has been interacting with living cells since life started, better still, it is the mechanism of energy transfer responsible for the beginning and maintenance of life. We all know that if the sun was to extinguish itself suddenly on any Monday, by Wednesday some plants would have begun to die, some other life would be gone by Thursday and so on.......until our planet would look like a wet version of Mars.
We are here because the energy showered upon the earth and upon us, can be absorbed, utilized and can keep us around for a while longer. Albert Einstein left us with the most famous of equations: E=mc2. What is important in it is the fact that he proved that Energy (E) is equal, or the same as matter or mass (m). We could say that mass or matter is an 'lowly form of energy'. But both are one and the same........
By the way, this is a statement that has been made by all of the ancient cultures......mmhhhh.....we'll go into that later, much later. Let's go back to our special Laser light.
In living cells we have some structures and special elements that 'react' when certain light hits them; only some light or lights produce these changes. Our Laser is made to produce a light that triggers off only the changes we want to produce in the cells.
We are familiar with light interacting with our bodies: stay out in the sun and you will turn darker, read these words and you are interacting with the light reflected on them and reaching your eye, etc.
The trick is to be able to produce these changes in a controlled fashion; this requires to be able to control the light and a Laser light, because of the features we described above, is controlled to the maximum. Summarizing, four features in a Laser light make it unique:
It is:
1. Monochromatic. --> One wavelength only.
2. Coherent. ---> All photons 'marching' in phase or at the same pace.
3. Unidirectional. --> The beam does not 'disperse' but remains travelling 100% straight.
4. Highly brilliant --> Very high photonic density.
No. 1 gives the light its color (red, green) visible in common pointers.
No. 2 is responsible for delivering very controlled amounts of them to the tissues.
No.3 gives us the same intensity throughout the whole path delivering all of it into the target.
No. 4 Accounts for the penetration and allows us to 'kick start' the tissue into activity.
In the next post we will review what activity is generated in a living cell and what are the results of this activity.
What makes a laser light different from natural light like that from the sun, a light bulb or a fire is found in the 'photons' . In natural light we find that the photons belong to different types or categories, meaning that although all are 'light particles', if we were to measure their height or width, some would have the same wavelength and intensity('identical twins'), others would show different ones and so forth in a multitude of 'sizes and features'. Just like you and me are different in our features.
In a laser light ALL the photons are exactly of the same wavelength, (width), same amplitude (height) and same frequency. They are all clones of one original.
So a beam of natural light is very different from a beam of a Laser. If we were to use an easy example we could compare the beam of natural light with the start of a Marathon including thousands of different runners (different sizes, ages, colors, etc) running with a different pace and at their own stride and speed, while a beam coming from a Laser would be equivalent to a martial parade of thousands of clones, marching at the same pace and stride, wearing the same uniform and, obviously, of the same size.
THIS IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TWO LIGHTS, AND HERE LIES THE REASON WHY A LASER LIGHT INTERACTS WITH LIVING MATTER IN SUCH A SPECIAL WAY.
I will start by reviewing the fact that light has been interacting with living cells since life started, better still, it is the mechanism of energy transfer responsible for the beginning and maintenance of life. We all know that if the sun was to extinguish itself suddenly on any Monday, by Wednesday some plants would have begun to die, some other life would be gone by Thursday and so on.......until our planet would look like a wet version of Mars.
We are here because the energy showered upon the earth and upon us, can be absorbed, utilized and can keep us around for a while longer. Albert Einstein left us with the most famous of equations: E=mc2. What is important in it is the fact that he proved that Energy (E) is equal, or the same as matter or mass (m). We could say that mass or matter is an 'lowly form of energy'. But both are one and the same........
By the way, this is a statement that has been made by all of the ancient cultures......mmhhhh.....we'll go into that later, much later. Let's go back to our special Laser light.
In living cells we have some structures and special elements that 'react' when certain light hits them; only some light or lights produce these changes. Our Laser is made to produce a light that triggers off only the changes we want to produce in the cells.
We are familiar with light interacting with our bodies: stay out in the sun and you will turn darker, read these words and you are interacting with the light reflected on them and reaching your eye, etc.
The trick is to be able to produce these changes in a controlled fashion; this requires to be able to control the light and a Laser light, because of the features we described above, is controlled to the maximum. Summarizing, four features in a Laser light make it unique:
It is:
1. Monochromatic. --> One wavelength only.
2. Coherent. ---> All photons 'marching' in phase or at the same pace.
3. Unidirectional. --> The beam does not 'disperse' but remains travelling 100% straight.
4. Highly brilliant --> Very high photonic density.
No. 1 gives the light its color (red, green) visible in common pointers.
No. 2 is responsible for delivering very controlled amounts of them to the tissues.
No.3 gives us the same intensity throughout the whole path delivering all of it into the target.
No. 4 Accounts for the penetration and allows us to 'kick start' the tissue into activity.
In the next post we will review what activity is generated in a living cell and what are the results of this activity.
