Introduction to the Physics of Lasers

1. Auflage 2026
ISBN: 978-1-032-94277-3
Verlag: Taylor & Francis Ltd

Buch, Englisch, 482 Seiten, Format (B × H): 178 mm x 254 mm

This textbook provides an accessible introduction to laser physics, exploring three key questions: What is special about laser light? What is the physics underlying its generation? And how can laser light be manipulated and used?

The material is presented in a manner that helps the reader develop an understanding of the underlying physics principles and processes without getting bogged down in mathematical details, but there is enough mathematics for the understanding to be quantitative.

The book begins by describing the special properties of laser light and focuses on the physics of light-matter interaction to understand how it acquires them. It builds upon Maxwells equations for light and the classical electron oscillator model for the atoms, augmented with a quantum mechanical picture of atomic energy levels, to provide an accurate physical understanding of light-matter interaction. This approach bypasses the need for a course in quantum theory.

Derivations of key equations are included not only to help readers follow the development of the subject, but also to illustrate that to approximate, simplify, and get analytic results is integral to understanding any complex phenomenon. Subjects such as nonlinear pulse propagation and nonlinear optics are discussed, but only at a level that should help readers to get started in these fields. The choice of topics has been limited to atomic/molecular lasers to allow for their coverage in one semester-long course.

Problems, references and illustrations are included throughout the book, making it an ideal textbook for advanced undergraduate and graduate physics and engineering students. Students do not require prior knowledge of physics much beyond an undergraduate-level introduction to electromagnetic theory, including Maxwell’s equations, polarization in atomic media and electromagnetic wave propagation.

Key features:

· Provides a qualitative and quantitative understanding of, and appreciation for, the special properties of laser light

· Explores quantum statistics of laser light

· Presents an analytical approach to pulse formation

Zielgruppe

Postgraduate and Undergraduate Advanced

Autoren/Hrsg.

Singh, Surendra

Fachgebiete

• Naturwissenschaften Physik Physik Allgemein
• Technische Wissenschaften Technik Allgemein Technische Optik, Lasertechnologie
• Technische Wissenschaften Sonstige Technologien | Angewandte Technik Lasertechnologie, Holographie
• Naturwissenschaften Physik Mechanik

Inhaltsverzeichnis

1. Laser Light. 2. Maxwell’s Equations, Waves, and Rays. 3.Paraxial Beam Solutions of Wave Equation. 4. Laser Resonators. 5. Electron Oscillator Model of Light-Matter Interaction. 6. Quantum Mechanics of Atomic Response. 7. Population Inversion, Saturation, and Laser Systems. 8: Laser Threshold and Oscillations. 9.Buildup of Oscillations and Quantum Statistics of Laser Light. 10. Laser Transients and Q-switched Operation. 11. Mode-locking and Short Pulse Generation in Lasers. 12. Nonlinear Optics.

Über Autor(innen)

Surendra Singh is University Professor of Physics at the University of Arkansas. He received B.Sc. (Honors) and M.Sc. degrees in Nuclear Physics from Banaras Hindu University, India, where he was awarded the Chancellor’s Gold Medal, and a Ph.D. in Quantum Optics from the University of Rochester under the mentorship of Professor Leonard Mandel. His doctoral thesis received the Dexter Prize for Outstanding Physics Thesis.
His teaching and research span laser physics, quantum optics, nonlinear optics, electro-dynamics, and quantum mechanics. He has contributed experimentally and theoretically to the study of noise in lasers and nonlinear optical systems and to the phase and polarization properties of laser beams. He has also developed laboratory courses in lasers and optics and co-authored a graduate-level textbook on quantum mechanics.
He has served as Chair of the Department of Physics at the University of Arkansas, was a Visiting Fellow at JILA, and has held honorary visiting professorships at IIT Madras and the University of Ulm. He is a Fellow of the American Physical Society and an APS Outstanding Referee.