PUBLIC TALK: 50 Years of the Laser and a Brilliant Future (2010 deLaeter Youth Lecture)

All of us use lasers, relying on them when we communicate, watch a video, drive a car or need medical help.   100 years ago these possibilities were unheard of - just ideas in the mind of a few; 50 years ago the first laser sent out the first pulse of light, and now it is one of our underlying technologies.  How does it actually work?  Why is it so powerful? What might the future bring?  This will be discussed in this fast paced lecture about lasers. The lecture will include many exciting demonstrations and is aimed at high school students upwards.

Prof. Hans-Albert Bachor is the Director of the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Quantum-Atom Optics (ACQAO), a national centre to study atoms and light at the quantum level and to explore options for future quantum technologies. He received his diploma and doctorate in Physics from the University of Hannover, Germany and was attracted to Australia in 1981 by the ANU where he has been teaching Physics at all levels with great enthusiasm and success. He has pioneered techniques for sensitive measurements beyond the quantum limit, for new types of optical sensors, interferometers, optical communication or data storage. He has worked and taught in the USA, Germany, Denmark and France and trained many young scientists in Australia. He holds many academic awards and distinctions, including the Humboldt Research Prize, Fellow of the Institute of Physics (UK) and Australian Institute of Physics (AIP) and the Optical Society of America (OSA). He is recipient of the Walter Boas medal and the Award for achievements to Physics from the AIP.