• explain the relationship between power, energy and time
• calculate the average and peak power of a laser
• describe the operation of acousto-optic, electro-optic, and passive Q-switches
• describe cavity dumping and explain why it's a variation of Q-switching
• describe what modelocking is and explain why it generates shorter pulses than Q-switching
• discuss the common techniques of reducing laser bandwidth
• discuss nonlinear effects including mixing, optical parametric oscillation, harmonic generation, and upconversion
• describe what phasematching is, and why it's essential in nonlinear optics

Intended for engineers who want to increase their knowledge of laser technology and technicians working with lasers, viewers should have a basic understanding of scientific principles and elementary algebra.

Breck Hitz served for 20 years as the executive director of LEOMA-the Laser and Electro-Optics Manufacturers' Association-and organized much of the U.S. laser industry's political activities during that period. He is the current chairman of the ISO Laser Standards Committee, and has represented the U.S. laser industry at export-control negotiation at both COCOM (Paris) and Wassenaar (Vienna). During the past 25 years, he has presented the course to literally thousands of engineers, scientists, technicians, and business people. He holds Bachelor and Master degrees in physics from the Pennsylvania State University and the University of Massachusetts, respectively.