CO2 lasers are also referred to as carbon dioxide
lasers, an
d
was one the first gas lasers to developed. CO2 Lasers were invented by Kumar
Patel of Bell Labs in 1964, and are still one of the most useful lasers. CO2
Lasers are are the highest-power continuous wave lasers currently available and
very efficient, and the ratio of output power to pump power, can be as large as
20%. CO2 Lasers produce a beam of red light and the principal wavelength bands
centres around 9.4 and 10.6 micrometers. CO2 lasers are used in industry for
cutting and welding and they are also extremely useful for some surgical
procedures, an example being skin resurfacing, which is the burning of the skin
to promote collagen formation. CO2 Laser are also used for military purposes
such as range finding, because the atmosphere quite transparent to infrared
light.