laser
Do you know the principle behind a laser beam?
First, know that light is a weird sort of wave that comes in discrete quantities (photons). When the waves of two photons are lined up, wiggling as one, we say they are "in phase". If many photos are in phase with one another, the light is called coherent.
Most light sources emit incoherent light.
A laser mostly consists of two mirrors and somwthing that makes light (although the details are technical and I don't know them).
As light is created, it bounces back and forth. Each photon may act like a seed crystal in a saturated solution does, sparking the creation of a new photon (crucially, in phase with it!)
Eventually one overall phase dominates (like the gradual clarification of audio feedback into a single pure note) and the light is coherent.
When one of the mirrors is opened, the light is released. Unlike ordinary light, a laser barely disperses, it can travel straight and burn bright for a great distance.
I played moon pool, wish maker... "and in these mirrors"...
Sometimes I think my wife is caught between the reflections of mirrors in a laser, but this chamber resonates at a split tone. And release is death.
Is a beam of light a delicate or powerful thing?
Light, not a lightningbug...