The organic laser uses a protein found in jellyfish as its light source, creating the first organic laser.
The laser uses a single cell as its optical gain media. The cell was engineered based upon a species of jellyfish that uses green fluorescent protein (GFP) to create bioluminescent light. An inch long cylinder with mirrors at each end was built, and then a cell that express GFP at the required level was placed inside the cylinder. The cell based device created short bursts of light, and the spherical shape of the cell helped to focus the light.
The new technology could have applications in biomedicine and optical computing.
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