What are the differences between laser and Infra-red (IR)?

Question

Would you please explain each of them for me?
is (IR) a kind of Laser?

Answer 1

heat, on one is from light the- laser two ir is picks up heat from you or others if you cold blood can see you on ir

Answer 2

That is a pretty common confusion. Most people get confused between laser and infra red because most of the commercial low end lasers that we get to see are red. Actually the differences are vast.

1) LASER - Light Amplified by Stimulated Emission of Radiations
The very word is an acronym and when expanded explains it all. It says when normal light waves are amplified by cumulative stimulation of the medium in which it is generated, an avalanche effect occurs as a result of which a hichly cohersive emission of light radiations occur. This high intensity is an epitome of condensed energy. The colour of the radiation depends upon the medium used. It can be blue, green, yellow, red. I remember hearing somewhere that even colourless LASERs are also available.

2) IR - Infra Red waves have again got their meaning embedded in their name. This is at the lower end of the spectrum of the electromagnetic waves. Its wavelength is just below the Red light. Whenever a body is warmer than zero kelvin, it emits IR. Only the intensity varies at different temperatures. But still it is very perceptible at temperatures above 40 or 50 degrees celsius. It is not visible to Human eyes. But many animals like mosquitos, snakes and ALIENS!!! are said to be able to see IR emissions. But even IR can be used to make LASER, but a suitable medium is required for it.

This is a topic that requires vast discussions. But you can safely conclude that NOT ALL LASERs ARE IRs AND NOT ALL IRs ARE LASERS. BUT LASERS CAN BE IRS AND VICE VERSA.

Answer 3

A laser is a light source based on stimulated emission of radiation. Radiation from a laser has a high degree of coherence, a narrow bandwidth and is usually, but not necessarily, collimated and polarized. Lasers exist for wavelengths from the x-ray region through to the infrared. The same type of device is called a maser at microwave and longer wavelengths.

Infrared refers to wavelengths between the visible region and the microwave region from approximately 0.7 microns to 1000 microns. Although Infrared lasers exist and are used widely for telecommunications and for cutting metal, the term IR does not in itself imply a laser. Infrared radiation is also produced by hot bodies such as the sun or a light bulb and is sometimes called heat radiation (even though only a small part of the IR region is commonly experienced as heat).

Answer 4

All models of the mechanism of the light-driven proton pump bacteriorhodopsin (BR) assume that it is the proton of the protonated Schiff base through which the chromophore all-trans retinal is bound to Lys216, which is being pumped (Haupts et al., 1997; Spudich and Lanyi, 1996; Brown et al., 1998). Light absorption isomerizes the chromophore to a distorted 13-cis geometry, and this primary molecular event is followed by thermal relaxations of the chromophore and the protein, resulting in pKa well adjusted changes in time of the Schiff base and the primary proton acceptor and donor Asp85 and Asp96, respectively. This allows proton transfer from the Schiff base to Asp85 and, at a later stage, reprotonation of the Schiff base from Asp96 (see Mathies et al., 1991; Rothschild, 1992; Oesterhelt et al., 1992; Ebrey, 1993; Lanyi, 1993, for reviews on BR). In the same time range as that in which the proton is transferred from the Schiff base to Asp85 and apparently triggered by this process, a proton appears at the extracellular surface. For this, additional pKa changes have to take place, and evidence has been provided that Glu204, Glu194, and probably Arg82 are involved (Balashov et al., 1995, 1996; Misra et al., 1997; Brown et al., 1995; Richter et al., 1996a,b; Dioumaev et al., 1998), although there is some debate about the precise role of these amino acids (Rammelsberg et al., 1998).
etc