[C6H8O7]

I am a laser hobbyist.Is there anyone else here who has had an opportunity to mess around with lasers.

Current project is to find a dead dvd burner and hook up the diode to an independent power supply.Would be even better to find a blue ray burner for the lower spectrum violet but alas I don't believe these have had a good opportunity to fail after warranty and purchasing a new one would probably end up in my pc before I try tearing into it.

What sort of applications can you use a laser for?Is there much call for it in other forms of chemistry?

[Yggdrasil]

Lasers are useful for spectroscopy and microscopy in science.  In my lab, we use lasers to excite fluorophores (such as a green fluorescent protein) and image them in cells.  More complicated applications involve using a pair of fluorophores as a spectroscopic ruler (Förster resonance energy transfer or FRET).  Lasers can also be used for micromanipulation of chemical or biological systems.  In these experiments, called optical tweezing or laser tweezing, one traps a bead in the focus of a tightly focused laser beam.  If this beam is attached to a molecule or interest, one can move the beam in order to pull on and exert force on that molecule.  Such experiments have been used to study the elasticity of DNA and even to look at the ability of molecular motors (such as DNA polymerase, the enzymes involved replicating DNA) to generate force.

[C6H8O7]

That intrigues me.Biology and biochemistry are not my usual field of study so its always nice to hear what goes on outside your "usual" box.

I may take a few classes at some point and get more acquainted with this quickly growing field.