Technology that Turns Lasers Into Sound

Scientists managed to turn light into sound using their latest-invention - a brand new laser technology. A team of researchers at the Naval Research Laboratory developed a technology able to increase and improve underwater acoustic applications. The technology allows compressing laser pulses. It is worth mentioning that different colors of a laser pass through air and water at different speeds. However, in the water the concentration effects prove to be stronger. It is possible for a well-tuned laser to pass several hundreds of meters through the air and then rapidly compress after entering the water, which would help a jet to send messages underwater, reports LiveScience. If the colors of a laser are arranged in a particular way, the laser pulse would compress in time while passing through the water, which focuses the light. To be able to transform light into sound, researchers compress a laser pulse so it would ionize a small quantity of water. After giving charge to the molecules of water, the ionized water soaks up the laser energy and then heats up. Finally scientists witness a small explosion of steam that produces a pulse of sound having 220 decibels. (www.infoniac.com)

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