So I was playing with my great little 300mw red laser off ebay. Of course then I had to point it in a mirror and try to align the beams. The moment I did the diode went down to a faint glow.
Did I kill it?
Good thing I didn't make a black hole.
Yea. That would've sucked for all of us. Pun intended
Black holes are a very serious thing! I don't think you understand the gravity of the situation
Joking aside it raises a question I though about. Why can't even weak 5mw lasers be focused into a small enough spot to burn things?
It's catastrophic optical damage (COD). It is dead.
This is why you need anti-reflective-coated lenses for high power, and it's always a good idea to point the laser at a slight angle when going through additional lenses, windows, or other optics.
[cod] is why you need anti-reflective-coated lenses for high power
Yea. That would've sucked for all of us. Pun intended