“Lasers are so cool!” – practically everybody.

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Even if we don’t realize it, lasers are ubiquitous in our lives. Lasers are neat because they provide a tremendous amount of control while generating large amounts of energy in a concentrated beam. However, just like any high-energy situation, somebody always ends up getting hurt.

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While you were sitting there and enjoying your laser, did you ever stop to think about the people/ things involved at an atomic level? To generate your light beam, a gazillion electrons are repeatedly abducted from their ground states; thrust into an excited state from which, against all odds, they must find their way back home.

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This is a story of one such electron which trapped in a Titanium-doped sapphire crystal used in a laser. Narrated in the format of an avant-garde comic, the left side of the page tells the tale of the electron while the right side of the page attempts to elucidate the scientific concepts in the story. As the author of this tale is overflowing with appreciation for and obsessing over lasers, he hopes to transfer some of this awe to you, once you’ve read it.