Making rain with lasers
Ultra-intense laser beam found to induce cloud formation
Read article: Making rain with lasers
Author archive
Read article: Making rain with lasers
And then there was light
Pauline Rigby describes how a then little-known scientist became the first person to design and build a working laser
Read article: And then there was light
Medical lasers: diagnose, treat, cure
The laser at 50: the laser is a major force in medicine and one that's set to play a pivotal role in the diagnosis and treatment of early-stage disease, says Brian Pogue
Read article: Medical lasers: diagnose, treat, cure
The next big thing in laser manufacturing
The laser at 50: the ultrafast fibre laser has a bright future in manufacturing, explains Andreas Tünnermann
Read article: The next big thing in laser manufacturing
Optical communications: making the link
The laser at 50: fundamental research remains crucial to the development of the next generation of communications lasers, argues Tom Hausken
Read article: Optical communications: making the link
Space-based lasers: the final frontier?
The laser at 50: what can you do with a laser in space that you can't do on the ground? Narasimha Prasad sheds some light
Read article: Space-based lasers: the final frontier?
Model gives insight into HIV vaccines
Virus mutation and response takes the random walk
Read article: Model gives insight into HIV vaccines
From ray-gun to Blu-ray
Fifty years after their invention, Sidney Perkowitz examines the huge impact of lasers on science, culture and everyday life
Read article: From ray-gun to Blu-ray
Where next for the laser?
Six laser experts recall how the laser has advanced their fields of interest – and speculate where it will take these areas next
Read article: Where next for the laser?
Fusion’s bright new dawn
The world's largest laser could transform the search for abundant, carbon-free electricity, as Mike Dunne explains
Read article: Fusion’s bright new dawn
Copyright © 2026 by IOP Publishing Ltd and individual contributors