The sound of a laser.

From: David Prokopetz (sirbob_at_penguinking.com)
Date: 08/20/04 

Date: Thu, 19 Aug 2004 20:12:47 -0600

Hi.

Physics newbie question here: what does a laser sound like? Some sources
I've read claim that a sufficiently powerful laser would ionise the air
along its path and produce a "crackle" or "pop" noise, while others claim
that regardless of power, a laser has to be of a particular colour to ionise
the air and thus produce a sound - but fail to mention what that colour is.
Is any of this information accurate?

As a follow-up question, if a laser actually can make noise, is there an
easy way to derive an approximate relationship between how powerful the
laser is and how loud it is?

Thanks,

 - David Prokopetz.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: The sound of a laser.
    ... what does a laser sound like? ... > I've read claim that a sufficiently powerful laser would ionise the air ... If the electrons in the "air" atoms are able to absorb light energy ... which may absorb or scatter the light as they drift into a continuous beam. ...
    (sci.optics)
  • Re: "laser" microphone
    ... Something about air going through a tube and being scanned ... Anybody know anything about "laser" microphones? ... measurement that grow as the scale is reduced to molecular dimensions. ...
    (rec.audio.pro)
  • Re: "laser" microphone
    ... Something about air going through a tube and being scanned ... Anybody know anything about "laser" microphones? ... C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis." ...
    (rec.audio.pro)
  • Re: The sound of a laser.
    ... >I've read claim that a sufficiently powerful laser would ionise the air ... >the air and thus produce a sound - but fail to mention what that colour is. ...
    (sci.optics)
  • Re: The sound of a laser.
    ... > I've read claim that a sufficiently powerful laser would ionise the air ... > the air and thus produce a sound - but fail to mention what that colour ...
    (sci.physics)
Quantcast