Lasers
by Anamecia Torres
Objective: The project objectivity is to understand how lasers work, bends, and why it can be
seen with fog.
Target Audience: The target audience for my project is middle school kids. (5th to 7th graders)
Materials: Laser, Mirror, Safety Goggles, Fog Machine
Safety Precautions: Do NOT look directly into the laser. Wear safety goggles. Do NOT lie
down in the fog.
Leading Questions:
1. What is a laser?
2. Is there a way you can see the laser, besides at the place where the laser hits?
3. Can the laser light bend?
Procedure:
1. Put on safety goggles.
2. Point laser at mirror and turn it on.
3. Angle the laser towards the mirror and see what happens.
4. Turn on the fog machine and see what happens to the laser beam.
Follow up Questions:
1. How did the laser bend off the mirror?
2. Why was the fog able to reveal the laser beam?
3. What can lasers are used for?
Chemistry behind Project: Laser stands for light amplification by stimulated emission of
radiation. The laser controls the energy being release from the photons on the different atoms.
As the photons get “excited” they give off light, thus producing the beam coming out of the laser.
This is when the electron on the atom moves from a higher energy level to a lower energy level.
When the laser was pointed at an angle towards the mirror, the laser beam was bended. This
was so because the laser beam was reflected off the mirror, since the mirror shows the
reflection of objects onto it. This is because of the Law of Reflection. The Law of Reflection
states that when the light ray hits the mirror, the angle at which the laser hit the mirror is the
same as the angle at which the laser left the mirror. When the fog machine was turned on, the
laser beam reflects and refracts off of the particles from the fog. This causes the laser beam to
be seen with the naked eye. A laser is different than a flashlight. The laser sends out light in a
straight line that is forced and a flashlight sends out light in all directions.
Reference:
 http://ezinearticles.com/?Laser-Experiments-You-Can-Share-With-Your-HomeschoolKids&id=516486
 http://www.physicsclassroom.com/class/refln/u13l1c.cfm
 http://science.howstuffworks.com/laser4.htm
 Dr. Jones’ Chemistry Notes