City of Light: The Story of Fiber Optics
City of Light: The Story of Fiber Optics
City of Light: The Story of Fiber Optics
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Chapter 8<br />
NOTES TO PAGES 92–95 295<br />
1. ‘‘<strong>Light</strong> amplifier extends spectrum,’’ Electronics, July 22, 1960, p. 43.<br />
2. Strictly speaking, some other sources generate light that is coherent over<br />
very short distances, and some lasers are not very coherent. However, lasers remain<br />
the most practical sources <strong>of</strong> coherent light.<br />
3. Internal memo by W. A. Tyrell, quoted in Rudolf Kompfner, ‘‘<strong>Optics</strong> at Bell<br />
Laboratories—optical communications,’’ Applied <strong>Optics</strong> 11, No. 11, pp. 2412–<br />
2425 (Nov. 1972).<br />
4. For more details, see Jeff Hecht, Laser Pioneers (Academic Press, Boston,<br />
1991).<br />
5. Townes grew up in Greenville, South Carolina, the home town <strong>of</strong> Will Hicks,<br />
and like Hicks attended Furman University before leaving for graduate school. At<br />
Furman, Hicks was a classmate <strong>of</strong> Townes’s younger sister, Aurelia, who later<br />
married Schawlow. While they share sharp minds, fertile technical imaginations,<br />
and the same small-city southern background, the two have contrasting styles.<br />
Townes is a gentleman <strong>of</strong> the old school, scholarly and dignified; Hicks is casual<br />
and folksy, with an unmistakably southern tone to his voice. Townes has spent<br />
his life in academia, publishing widely in scholarly journals and serving on many<br />
government science-policy panels. Hicks has spent most <strong>of</strong> his life as an entrepreneur<br />
and inventor, collecting over a hundred patents and starting a series <strong>of</strong><br />
companies.<br />
6. Arthur L. Schawlow and Charles H. Townes, ‘‘Infrared and optical masers,’’<br />
Physical Review 112, p. 1940 (1958).<br />
7. <strong>The</strong> story <strong>of</strong> laser development is a rich tale in itself. For highlights, see<br />
Hecht, Laser Pioneers, and Joan Bromberg, <strong>The</strong> Laser in America (MIT Press, Cambridge,<br />
1991).<br />
8. <strong>The</strong> journal’s eminent and opinionated founding editor, Samuel Goudsmit,<br />
was annoyed by a series <strong>of</strong> papers reporting minor advances, and Maiman had<br />
published a related paper in the journal just weeks before. Hecht, Laser Pioneers;<br />
Bromberg, <strong>The</strong> Laser in America’’ (p. 92).<br />
9. <strong>The</strong>odore H. Maiman, ‘‘Stimulated optical radiation in ruby,’’ Nature 187,<br />
p. 493 (Aug. 6, 1960).<br />
10. ‘‘<strong>Light</strong> amplifier.’’<br />
11. ‘‘Scientists demonstrate optical maser,’’ Electronics, Oct. 21, 1960, p. 38.<br />
(Bell Labs stubbornly continued to call the laser an ‘‘optical maser’’ although<br />
others quickly adopted the name laser.)<br />
12. R. N. Schwartz and Charles H. Townes, ‘‘Interstellar and interplanetary<br />
communication by optical masers,’’ Nature 190, pp. 205–208 (Apr. 15,<br />
1961).<br />
13. Hecht, Laser Pioneers (interview with Ali Javan).<br />
14. Richard Smith, telephone interview, June 11, 1997.<br />
15. Ivan Kaminow, interview, July 19, 1995.<br />
16. James P. Gordon, telephone interview, July 5, 1994.<br />
17. S. E. Miller and L. C. Tillotson, ‘‘Optical transmission research,’’ Applied<br />
<strong>Optics</strong> 5, pp. 1538–1549 (Oct. 1966).<br />
18. Strictly speaking, by over 60 decibels (decibels are explained on pages<br />
115–116). Miller and Tillotson, ‘‘Optical transmission research.’’<br />
19. R. Meredith, Royal Radar and Signals Establishment, ‘‘Unguided optical<br />
propagation in the atmosphere and under-sea,’’ paper presented at the Conference