maser

American  

[mey-zer] / ˈmeɪ zər /

noun

1. a device for amplifying electromagnetic waves by stimulated emission of radiation.

---

maser British  

/ ˈmeɪzə /

noun

1. a device for amplifying microwaves, working on the same principle as a laser

---

maser Scientific  

/ mā′zər /

1. Short for microwave amplification by stimulated emission of radiation. A device that generates coherent microwaves using the same principles as a laser. Masers are used in a variety of applications, including in atomic clocks. Natural masers are found in outer space when water or other substances are excited by radiation from a star or by the energy of a collision.

---

Etymology

Origin of maser

1950–55; m(icrowave) a(mplification by) s(timulated) e(mission of ) r(adiation)

Example Sentences

By connecting the regions that fired a maser emission the researchers could map out the surface of the disk in G358-MM1.

From Space Scoop • Mar. 29, 2023

In the late 1950s, Gould explored using light to optically ‘pump’ a maser — a device emitting microwaves at a specific frequency, invented by physicist Charles Townes in 1953.

From Nature • Jan. 8, 2019

The experiment showed that the stronger gravitational field at Earth’s surface really did slow the flow of time relative to that measured by the maser in the rocket.

From Textbooks • Oct. 13, 2016

Charles Townes, the Nobel Prize–winning physicist credited with the invention of the laser and its predecessor — the maser — died in Oakland, Calif., on Tuesday.

From Time • Jan. 29, 2015

Scientific and technical instruments—oscilloscopes, X-ray generators, radar equipment, maser sets, dynostatic crystals, thermolight resonators, and so on—were stolen complete or gutted for various parts.

From Anything You Can Do! by Garrett, Randall