How ‘Random’ Lasers Work: Natural Cavities Act Like Mirrors in Light-Emitting Plastics.
When University of Utah scientists discovered a new kind of laser that was generated by an electrically conducting plastic or polymer, no one could explain how it worked and some doubted it was real.
Now, a decade later, the Utah researchers have found these “random lasers” occur because of natural, mirror-like cavities in the polymers, and they say such lasers may prove useful for diagnosing cancer.
“Nobody knew how it worked until now,” says Z. Valy Vardeny, a distinguished professor of physics and senior author of the new study, published online Jan. 24 in the journal Nature Physics. “We succeeded in imaging the cavities. This is a big step in our understanding of this bizarre phenomenon, which not many people believed.”
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