Open AccessThe First Coupling of a Laser Beam to a Water Jet
Author(s) -
Shankar Nitin
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
photonicsviews
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2626-1308
pISSN - 2626-1294
DOI - 10.1002/phvs.202100014
Subject(s) - machining , laser , laser beams , diamond , materials science , optics , jet (fluid) , beam (structure) , laser ablation , coupling (piping) , water jet , fiber laser , joint european torus , mechanical engineering , optoelectronics , engineering , composite material , metallurgy , plasma , physics , aerospace engineering , tokamak , quantum mechanics , nozzle
Assigned to a project for designing a laser‐based dental hand tool, Bernold Richerzhagen visualized combining a water jet and a laser for tooth ablation. His dental tool envisioned a laser within a low‐pressure hair‐thin water jet that guided the beam by means of total internal reflection in a manner like an optical fiber. Eventually, this fusion of light and water resulted in a new technology capable of machining hard materials with high precision. Starting with a dental tool developed in a Swiss laboratory in 1993, this invention has fostered high‐precision laser machining in the aviation, diamond and semiconductor industries amongst others.