Dye laser
equipment using an organic dye to emit coherent light
A dye laser is a laser that uses an organic dye as the lasing medium, usually as a liquid solution. Compared to gases and most solid state lasing media, a dye can usually be used for a much wider range of wavelengths, often spanning 50 to 100 nanometers or more. The wide bandwidth makes them particularly suitable for tunable lasers and pulsed lasers. The dye rhodamine 6G, for example, can be tuned from 635 nm (orangish-red) to 560 nm (greenish-yellow), and produce pulses as short as 16 femtoseconds. Moreover, the dye can be replaced by another type in order to generate an even broader range of wavelengths with the same laser, from the near-infrared to the near-ultraviolet, although this usually requires replacing other optical components in the laser as well, such as dielectric mirrors or pump lasers.
Dye lasers were independently discovered by P. P. Sorokin, F. P. Schäfer (and colleagues), and Mary Spaeth in 1966.
In addition to the usual liquid state, dye lasers are also available as solid state dye lasers (SSDL). These SSDL lasers use dye-doped organic matrices as gain medium.
Construction
A dye laser uses a gain medium consisting of an organic dye, which is a carbon-based, soluble stain that is often fluorescent, such as the dye in a highlighter pen. The dye is mixed with a compatible solvent, allowing the molecules to diffuse evenly throughout the liquid.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Dye laser” is equipment using an organic dye to emit coherent light. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through laser, equipment and using, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “equipment using an organic dye to emit coherent light” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated May 1, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q1929925. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1966.
Overview language is designed for orientation and should not be treated as a substitute for the evidence cited beneath it. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Dye laser”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Dye laser primary sources, Dye laser archive and laser research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Dye laser”?
- Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Dye laser” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.