The vast majority of dye lasers traditionally have been sold for research and development, but applications in medical treatment are increasing rapidly. A few dye lasers are used for other applications, including medical diagnostic measurements, other types of inspection. and entertainment displays.

The major scientific applications of dye lasers are in spectroscopy and other types of measurement, both in the time and frequency (or wavelength) domains. The ability to tune dye laser wavelength and limit emission to a narrow spectral bandwidth makes dye lasers extremely useful for studying the absorption and emission of light by various materials, Although other light sources can be used in spectroscopy, dye lasers offer higher light intensities in narrower spectral bands than do other tunable, nonlaser sources. They have been particularly useful in the study of atomic and molecular physics, and in stimulating fluorescence. Dye lasers can be precisely tuned to match specific absorption and emission bands, allowing atoms to be slowed down to speeds equivalent to temperatures below 1 kelvin (K).

Ultrashort picosecond and femtosecond pulses from dye lasers have been invaluable in studies of time response, such as measurements of excited-state lifetimes and decay rates. Ultrashort pulses have been used to study semiconductor properties, chemical reaction kinetics, photosynthesis, time-resolved spectroscopy, and biomolecular processes. The scope of these time and frequency domain studies is far beyond the realm of this book.

In medicine, dye lasers are used to treat skin disorders and to shatter stones in the urinary system and gall bladder. Dye...