Laser vs. Light
Main DifferenceThe main difference between Laser and Light is that Laser is referred to as coherent, monochromatic, and highly directional light, whereas light is referred to as incoherent and divergent because of the mixture of the electromagnetic waves that contain different wavelengths.

Difference Between Laser and Light
Laser vs. Light
The type of the electromagnetic wave which has a stimulated emission is called laser, whereas the type of the electromagnetic wave which has a spontaneous emission is called light.
Laser vs. Light
The laser is referred to as a coherent electromagnetic wave because the photons emitted by its source are in phase, on the other hand, light is referred to as an incoherent electromagnetic wave because the photons emitted by its source are out of phase.
Laser vs. Light
A laser is referred to as a monochromatic electromagnetic wave. Conversely, light is referred to as a polychromatic electromagnetic wave.
Laser vs. Light
A laser is referred to as a monochromatic electromagnetic wave; on the flip side, light is referred to as a polychromatic electromagnetic wave.
Laser vs. Light
The laser is considered as a highly directional electromagnetic wave; on the other side, light is considered as a divergent electromagnetic wave.
Laser vs. Light
The laser is involved in covering a very narrow range of the frequencies, while, light is involved in covering a wide range of the frequencies.
Laser vs. Light
As the laser is highly directional, so we can focus it on a very sharp spot, on the other hand, as light is divergent, so we cannot focus it on a sharp spot.
Laser vs. Light
The laser is the electromagnetic wave that has a very specific color, whereas light is the electromagnetic wave that comprises the sum of all the colors.
Laser vs. Light
The laser is referred to as intense light; on the flip side, ordinary light is not considered as an intense light.
Laser vs. Light
There are a lot of application of the laser which includes its usage in eye surgery, in the metal cutting machines, CD players, in nuclear fusion reactors, laser printing, tattoo removal, barcode readers, in laser cooling, holography, in fiber optic communication, etc., on the other hand, light has a usage in lighting a small area.
Lasernoun
A device that produces a monochromatic, coherent beam of light.
Lightnoun
Visible electromagnetic radiation. The human eye can typically detect radiation (light) in the wavelength range of about 400 to 750 nanometers. Nearby shorter and longer wavelength ranges, although not visible, are commonly called ultraviolet and infrared light.
As you can see, this spacious dining-room gets a lot of light in the mornings.Lasernoun
A beam of light produced by such a device; a laser beam.
Lightnoun
A source of illumination.
Put that light out!Lasernoun
A laser printer.
Lightnoun
Spiritual or mental illumination; enlightenment, useful information.
Can you throw any light on this problem?Lasernoun
A gum resin obtained from certain umbelliferous plants.
Lightnoun
Facts; pieces of information; ideas, concepts.
Lasernoun
Such a plant.
Lightnoun
A notable person within a specific field or discipline.
Picasso was one of the leading lights of the cubist movement.Laserverb
To cut with a laser
Lightnoun
(painting) The manner in which the light strikes a picture; that part of a picture which represents those objects upon which the light is supposed to fall; the more illuminated part of a landscape or other scene; opposed to shade.
Laserverb
(sports) To throw with laser-like precision
Lightnoun
A point of view, or aspect from which a concept, person or thing is regarded.
I'm really seeing you in a different light today.Magoon's governorship in Cuba was viewed in a negative light by many Cuban historians for years thereafter.Lasernoun
an acronym for light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation; an optical device that produces an intense monochromatic beam of coherent light
Lightnoun
A flame or something used to create fire.
Hey, buddy, you got a light?Lightnoun
A firework made by filling a case with a substance which burns brilliantly with a white or coloured flame.
a Bengal lightLightnoun
A window, or space for a window in architecture.
This facade has eight south-facing lights.Lightnoun
The series of squares reserved for the answer to a crossword clue.
The average length of a light on a 15×15 grid is 7 or 8.Lightnoun
(informal) A cross-light in a double acrostic or triple acrostic.
Lightnoun
Open view; a visible state or condition; public observation; publicity.
Lightnoun
The power of perception by vision.
Lightnoun
The brightness of the eye or eyes.
Lightnoun
A traffic light, or, by extension, an intersection controlled by one or more that will face a traveler who is receiving instructions.
To get to our house, turn right at the third light.Lightnoun
(curling) A stone that is not thrown hard enough.
Lightverb
(transitive) To start (a fire).
We lit the fire to get some heat.Lightverb
(transitive) To set fire to; to set burning; to kindle.
She lit her last match.Lightverb
(transitive) To illuminate.
I used my torch to light the way home through the woods in the night.Lightverb
(intransitive) To become ignited; to take fire.
This soggy match will not light.Lightverb
To attend or conduct with a light; to show the way to by means of a light.
Lightverb
(nautical) To unload a ship, or to jettison material to make it lighter
Lightverb
To lighten; to ease of a burden; to take off.
Lightverb
To find by chance.
I lit upon a rare book in a second-hand bookseller's.Lightverb
To stop upon of eyes or a glance; to notice
Lightverb
(archaic) To alight; to land or come down.
She fell out of the window but luckily lit on her feet.Lightadjective
Having light.
The room is light when the Sun shines through the window.Lightadjective
Pale in colour.
She had light skin.Lightadjective
(of coffee) Served with extra milk or cream.
I like my coffee light.Lightadjective
Of low weight; not heavy.
My bag was much lighter once I had dropped off the books.Lightadjective
Lightly-built; designed for speed or small loads.
We took a light aircraft down to the city.Lightadjective
Gentle; having little force or momentum.
This artist clearly had a light, flowing touch.Lightadjective
Easy to endure or perform.
light duties around the houseLightadjective
Low in fat, calories, alcohol, salt, etc.
This light beer still gets you drunk if you have enough of it.Lightadjective
Unimportant, trivial, having little value or significance.
I made some light comment, and we moved on.Lightadjective
travelling with no carriages, wagons attached
Lightadjective
(obsolete) Unchaste, wanton.
Lightadjective
Not heavily armed; armed with light weapons.
light troops; a troop of light horseLightadjective
Not encumbered; unembarrassed; clear of impediments; hence, active; nimble; swift.
Lightadjective
(dated) Easily influenced by trifling considerations; unsteady; unsettled; volatile.
a light, vain person; a light mindLightadjective
Indulging in, or inclined to, levity; lacking dignity or solemnity; frivolous; airy.
Ogden Nash was a writer of light verse.Lightadjective
Not quite sound or normal; somewhat impaired or deranged; dizzy; giddy.
Lightadjective
Not of the legal, standard, or usual weight; clipped; diminished.
light coinLightadjective
Easily interrupted by stimulation.
light sleep; light anesthesiaLightadverb
Carrying little.
I prefer to travel light.Lightnoun
(physics) electromagnetic radiation that can produce a visual sensation;
the light was filtered through a soft glass windowLightnoun
any device serving as a source of illumination;
he stopped the car and turned off the lightsLightnoun
a particular perspective or aspect of a situation;
although he saw it in a different light, he still did not understandLightnoun
the quality of being luminous; emitting or reflecting light;
its luminosity is measured relative to that of our sunLightnoun
an illuminated area;
he stepped into the lightLightnoun
a condition of spiritual awareness; divine illumination;
follow God's lightLightnoun
the visual effect of illumination on objects or scenes as created in pictures;
he could paint the lightest light and the darkest darkLightnoun
a person regarded very fondly;
the light of my lifeLightnoun
mental understanding as an enlightening experience;
he finally saw the lightcan you shed light on this problem?Lightnoun
having abundant light or illumination;
they played as long as it was lightas long as the lighting was goodLightnoun
public awareness;
it brought the scandal to lightLightnoun
brightness and animation of countenance;
he had a sparkle in his eyeLightnoun
a divine presence believed by Quakers to enlighten and guide the soul
Lightnoun
a visual warning signal;
they saw the light of the beaconthere was a light at every cornerLightnoun
a device for lighting or igniting fuel or charges or fires;
do you have a light?Lightverb
make lighter or brighter;
This lamp lightens the room a bitLightverb
begin to smoke;
After the meal, some of the diners lit upLightverb
to come to rest, settle;
Misfortune lighted upon himLightverb
cause to start burning; subject to fire or great heat;
Great heat can ignite almost any dry matterLight a cigaretteLightverb
fall to somebody by assignment or lot;
The task fell to meIt fell to me to notify the parents of the victimsLightverb
get off (a horse)
Lightadjective
of comparatively little physical weight or density;
a light loadmagnesium is a light metal--having a specific gravity of 1.74 at 20 degrees CLightadjective
(used of color) having a relatively small amount of coloring agent;
light bluelight colors such as pastelsa light-colored powderLightadjective
of the military or industry; using (or being) relatively small or light arms or equipment;
light infantrylight cavalrylight industrylight weaponsLightadjective
not great in degree or quantity or number;
a light sentencea light accentcasualties were lightlight snow was fallinglight misty rainlight smoke from the chimneyLightadjective
psychologically light; especially free from sadness or troubles;
a light heartLightadjective
characterized by or emitting light;
a room that is light when the shutters are openthe inside of the house was airy and lightLightadjective
used of vowels or syllables; pronounced with little or no stress;
a syllable that ends in a short vowel is a light syllablea weak stress on the second syllableLightadjective
easily assimilated in the alimentary canal; not rich or heavily seasoned;
a light dietLightadjective
(used of soil) loose and large-grained in consistency;
light sandy soilLightadjective
(of sound or color) free from anything that dulls or dims;
efforts to obtain a clean bass in orchestral recordingsclear laughter like a waterfallclear reds and bluesa light lilting voice like a silver bellLightadjective
moving easily and quickly; nimble;
the dancer was light and gracefula lightsome buoyant stepwalked with a light tripping stepLightadjective
demanding little effort; not burdensome;
light houseworklight exerciseLightadjective
of little intensity or power or force;
the light touch of her fingersa light breezeLightadjective
(physics, chemistry) not having atomic weight greater than average;
light water is ordinary waterLightadjective
weak and likely to lose consciousness;
suddenly felt faint from the painwas sick and faint from hungerfelt light in the heada swooning fitlight-headed with winelight-headed from lack of sleepLightadjective
very thin and insubstantial;
thin paperflimsy voilelight summer dressesLightadjective
marked by temperance in indulgence;
abstemious mealsa light eatera light smokerate a light supperLightadjective
less than the correct or legal or full amount often deliberately so;
a light pounda scant cup of sugarregularly gives short weightLightadjective
having little importance;
losing his job was no light matterLightadjective
intended primarily as entertainment; not serious or profound;
light versea light comedyLightadjective
silly or trivial;
idle pleasurelight banterlight idle chatterLightadjective
having a spongy or flaky texture; well-leavened;
light pastriesLightadjective
designed for ease of movement or to carry little weight;
light aircrafta light truckLightadjective
having relatively few calories;
diet colalight (or lite) beerlite (or light) mayonnaisea low-cal dietLightadjective
(of sleep) easily disturbed;
in a light dozea light sleepera restless wakeful nightLightadjective
casual and unrestrained in sexual behavior;
her easy virtuehe was told to avoid loose (or light) womenwanton behaviorLightadverb
with few burdens;
experienced travellers travel lightComparison Chart
Laser | Light |
The type of electromagnetic wave which has a stimulated emission is called laser. | The type of electromagnetic wave which has a spontaneous emission is called light. |
Coherence | |
A laser is referred to as a coherent electromagnetic wave. | Light is referred to as an incoherent electromagnetic wave. |
Monochromatic Or Polychromatic | |
The laser is referred to as a monochromatic electromagnetic wave. | Light is referred to as a polychromatic electromagnetic wave. |
Directionality | |
A laser is considered as a highly directional electromagnetic wave. | Light is considered as a divergent electromagnetic wave. |
Range Of Frequencies | |
A laser is involved in covering a very narrow range of frequencies. | Light is involved in covering a wide range of frequencies. |
Focusing | |
As the laser is highly directional, so we can focus it on a very sharp spot. | As light is divergent, so we cannot focus it on a sharp spot. |
Color | |
A laser is an electromagnetic wave that has a very specific color. | Light is the electromagnetic wave that comprises the sum of all the colors. |
Intensity | |
A laser is referred to as intense light. | Ordinary light is not considered as intense light. |
Applications | |
Eye surgery, Metal Cutting Machines, CD Players, Nuclear Fusion Reactors, Laser Printing, Tattoo Removal, Barcode Readers, Laser Cooling, Holography, Fiber Optic Communication, etc. | Light has usage in lighting a small area. |
Laser vs. Light
The waves which came into existence because of the vibrations that occur between an electric field and a magnetic field are called electromagnetic waves. Both the laser and the light are considered as the electromagnetic waves. Because of this reason, they travel in a vacuum with the velocity of light. Nevertheless, laser light has properties that are very unique and cannot be seen in nature. Thus, it is considered to have very important properties.
Laser and light are frequently used in physics and are considered as the two important terms of this discipline of science. Sometimes we take laser as the form of the light. But the reality is that it is a light amplification of the radiations which are stimulated at the time of their emissions. We generally consider laser and light as the traveling photons. Both of them are different from each other in various ways.
We mainly differentiate laser and the light through the terms of the coherence. The laser is suggested as the monochromatic, coherent, and the unidirectional beam of light. Light present in the normal incandescent bulbs, on the flip side, emit photons according to their path of traveling, wavelengths, and their polarization. The laser is referred to as intense light, whereas ordinary light is not considered as an intense light.
Furthermore, the principle on which laser is based is stimulated emissions in which the photons get stimulated, and they emit photons on returning to their original energy states. Light, on the other hand, has a direction of travel and also has a whole range of energies. A laser is considered to be the type of electromagnetic wave which has a very specific color. Light, on the other side, is considered to be the type of electromagnetic wave, which is the sum of all the colors.
What is Laser?
The term “LASER” is an abbreviation for the Light Amplification by the Stimulated Emission of Radiation. Mostly atoms remain in the ground state because it is a stable state. Nevertheless, there also exists a small percentage of the atoms which are present at the excited or higher energy states. It is the temperature on which the percentage of the atoms at higher energy states depend. The number of atoms present at a given excited energy level increases as the temperature increases.
The lifespan of the excited state of the atoms is very short because of their instability. As a result, the excited atoms release their excess energy as photons and immediately de-excite to their ground states. These transitions do not demand any stimulus from outside and hence are called the probabilistic transitions. It is impossible to estimate the time that when an excited atom or molecule is getting de-excited. The transition process and the emission of the photons are random. We can say that the emission is spontaneous, and the emission of photons during transitions is out of phase (incoherent).
Nevertheless, some of the materials comprise higher energy states that have higher lifetimes. That energy states are called as the metastable states. Therefore, the atoms or molecules present in this state do not come back to their ground state immediately. We can also pump atoms or molecules to their metastable states by providing energy to them from the outside. They remain in the metastable state for a long time without returning to the ground. As a result, we can largely increase the percentage of the atoms at the metastable state by pushing more atoms or molecules from the ground state to the metastable state. This situation is called population inversion because it is completely opposite to the normal situation.
However, we can stimulate an atom to de-excite in a metastable state by an incident photon. A new photon is released during the transition. If the energy of the incoming photon is exactly equal to the difference of the energy between the ground state and the metastable state, then the frequency of the new photon, energy, the phase, and the direction will be the same to those of the incident photon. The new photon will be able to stimulate another excited atom if the population inversion state is the material medium. Ultimately, the process will convert into a chain reaction that will be responsible for emitting a flood of identical photons.
The emitted photons are monochromatic (single color), coherent (in-phase), and directional. We called this action as the basic laser action. The narrow frequency range, coherence, and directionality are some unique properties of laser light and are considered as the key advantages which are used in the laser applications. There are various types of lasers according to the type of lasing mediums, like gas lasers, dye lasers, solid-state lasers, and semiconductor lasers. We are using lasers in many different applications, and various new applications are being developed.
What is Light?
The fluorescent bulbs, the incandescent bulbs, which are also called the Tungsten filament bulbs and mainly the sunlight, are the most useful sources of ordinary light. According to theories, we came to know that any object having a temperature greater than the 0K (absolute zero) emits electromagnetic radiation. This is referred to as the basic concept that is being used in the incandescent bulbs. There is a Tungsten filament in an incandescent bulb.
When we switch on the bulb, then the applied potential difference enables the electrons to accelerate. As we all know that Tungsten has a high electrical resistance, therefore, the electrons collide with atomic cores within the shorter expanses. Because of the electron- atomic core collisions, they are involved in transferring some of their energy to the atomic cores, as the momentum of the electrons gets the change because of the collision. As a result of this transfer of energy, the Tungsten filament heats up.
The heated filament is involved in emitting the electromagnetic waves, which cover a wide range of frequency and turns into a blackbody. It is responsible for emitting IR, visible waves, microwaves, etc. But the useful part of this spectrum is its visible part. The sun is referred to as a super-heated blackbody. Because of this reason, it is involved in emitting a tremendous amount of energy, which is in the form of electromagnetic waves and is responsible for covering a wide range of frequency from radio waves to gamma rays. It is suggested that any heated body that emits radiation also emits the light waves.
At a given temperature, the Wien’s displacement law gives the wavelength which corresponds to the highest intensity of a blackbody. According to this law, the wavelength which corresponds to the highest intensity decreases as we increase the temperature. The wavelength which corresponds to the highest intensity of an object is considered to fall into the IR region at room temperature. Nevertheless, we can adjust the wavelength corresponding to the highest intensity by increasing the temperature of the body. But, the emission of the electromagnetic waves having other frequencies cannot be stopped. Because of this reason, such waves are not considered monochromatic.
It is obvious that all the ordinary light sources are referred to as divergent. Normally, we can say that ordinary light sources are involved in emitting the electromagnetic waves in all directions randomly. The phases of the emitted photons do not have any relationship. So, they are incoherent light sources. The waves emitted by the ordinary light sources are generally considered as polychromatic.
ConclusionAll of the above discussion concludes that both the laser and light are the types of electromagnetic waves. The former is referred to as a coherent electromagnetic wave and has a stimulated emission; on the other hand, the latter is referred to as an incoherent electromagnetic wave and has a spontaneous emission.