This book presents the first comprehensive interdisciplinary review of the rapidly developing
field of air lasing. In most applications of lasers such as cutting and engraving the laser
source is brought to the point of service where the laser beam is needed to perform its
function. However in some important applications such as remote atmospheric sensing placing
the laser at a convenient location is not an option. Current sensing schemes rely on the
detection of weak backscattering of ground-based forward-propagating optical probes and
possess limited sensitivity. The concept of air lasing (or atmospheric lasing) relies on the
idea that the constituents of the air itself can be used as an active laser medium creating a
backward-propagating impulsive laser-like radiation emanating from a remote location in the
atmosphere. This book provides important insights into the current state of development of air
lasing and its applications.
