Straight Out of 'Star Wars': This 'Death Star' Laser Actually Works
By Kacey Deamer, Staff Writer | April 25, 2017 02:04pm ET
The "super" laser brings together the power of multiple laser beams directed into a single intense output using an ultra-pure diamond crystal at the point of convergence.
Though it's not big enough or strong enough to destroy a planet, scientists have developed an amplified laser reminiscent of the Death Star from "Star Wars," according to a new study.
The futuristic superweapon combines multiple laser beams into one destructive blast, the researchers said. The idea of merging laser beams is not new, nor has it been limited to science fiction before now. A decades-old Russian missile defense project looked to use liquid as a beam combiner, but that project was abandoned after it was deemed not practical. A similar project in the U.S. investigated laser fusion, but using different materials. Now, a team of Australian scientists has combined the principles of these two research projects and applied them to a new material: diamond.
http://www.livescience.com/58826-amplified-death-star-laser-superweapon.html
