Gas laser

A gas laser is a laser in which an electric current is discharged through a gas to produce light. The first gas laser, the Helium-neon, was co-invented by Iranian physicist Ali Javan and American physicist William R. Bennett, Jr. in 1960.

Advantages

 * High volume of active material
 * Active material is relatively inexpensive
 * Almost impossible to damage the active material
 * Heat can be removed quickly from the cavity

Types of gas laser

 * Helium-neon laser
 * Nitrogen laser
 * Carbon dioxide laser
 * Ion laser
 * Gas dynamic laser