Fifty years of the laser: A Coherent view

In 2015, Laser Focus World contributing editor Jeff Hecht commemorated the magazine’s 50th anniversary with a series of articles chronicling major technology milestones. Among the trends, it’s interesting to note that some laser technologies, such as ruby, nitrogen, and helium cadmium (HeCd), may have generated initial excitement, but at best penetrated only a few niche markets. Rather, the bulk of today’s multibillion-dollar laser market consists of just a handful of “killer applications” that have broken through to significant commercial success. This year is Coherent’s 50th anniversary and, in many ways, the company’s history and success mirror such trends in the laser industry. While we continue to offer a broad spectrum of laser technologies that service markets ranging from a few units to tens of thousands of units, long-term success has been driven by a few important applications. This article examines some of the larger commercial market successes for lasers during the past 50 years, viewed through the prism of Coherent’s involvement.