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Published online 9 April 2009 | Nature | doi:10.1038/news.2009.360
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Bendy laser beams fired through the air
Curved tracks could help direct lightning or steer particle beams around colliders.
The Norse thunder god Thor deflected lightning with his hammer. Physicists could soon replicate this feat using curved laser beams.
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I can think of one use for this which would be monumental. I cannot promise that this would work, but for a moment imagine a very tight ring where you inject a laser input which loops in a complete circle. Then if you presume that once you create the ring, the ionization effect becomes self sustaining, and it forms a sort of channel which is evacuated of anything dispersive to the beam. You keep dumping laser light into the ring. Once the ring is formed, it becomes a laser light capacitor, you would be able to gradually build up a density of laser light which would burn through the purest of mirror confinement devices and beyond, using a relatively small input laser, over a long period of time. You would then ionize the air into a new channel to tap the stored super high density laser beam. It makes me wonder how densely you can pack light? Is there a maximum density?
If you can create channels to direct lightning would it also be possible to create a channel to transport electrical power where electric lines would not be feasible?
These curved beams of light are certainly a marvel - but why do I need these for lightning protection? For that pupose the usual straight beams look perfectly adequate to me. Otto Albrecht
@ Cyberbian : There really is no limit as to the density of packing of light. @ Bob : I don't see these replacing Electric lines... at least not commercially unless there is need for some special application of which we haven't heard yet. But why go through the trouble of first using a laser to ionize he air and losing so much energy in the form of heat, light and sound...Theres far lesser losses associated with energy transportation through metal cables. I would prefer to simply beam down a high intensity laser between the points. Initially I was going to pass the same comment as Otto... then I realized, these lasers are self-healing and can overcome obstructions like rain drops (as mentioned in the article)... thats a winner...