Laser: The Inventor, the Nobel Laureate, and the Thirty-Year Patent War

by Nick Taylor

In 1957 Gordon Gould, then an obscure physicist and perennial graduate student, conceived one of the revolutionary inventions of the twentieth century -- the laser. But before he could submit a patent application, a prominent professor of physics whose office was next door to Gould's filed his own laser patent claims. Gould fought to reclaim the rights to his work, beginning a battle that would last nearly thirty years. Many millions of dollars, as well as the integrity of scientific claims, were at stake in the litigation that ensued. Laser is Gould's story -- and an eye-opening look at the patent process in America, the nexus of the worlds of business and science.

Gould was struggling to finish his Ph.D. thesis when he struck upon the concept for the laser, or Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation. Light waves, Gould realized, would form a single concentrated beam when reflected between two mirrors inside a gas-filled chamber. Even as he was sketching his invention, Gould foresaw the tremendous potential of the laser in industry, communications, and the military. For three days he feverishly documented his ideas in a notebook, which he had notarized in a candy store near his Bronx apartment.

A small technology firm took a great interest in Gould's laser and soon won a Defense Department contract to develop lasers for the military. Ironically, Gould was denied a security clearance because of his past communist associations, and so was unable to work on his own invention. He could only watch from the sidelines as colleagues tried to build a working laser in a desperate race with larger, better-funded research labs.

Meanwhile, Gould's rival, Charles Townes, had everything that Gould lacked, most notably important academic and government appointments and esteem in the scientific community. In the dispute between the two men, few doubted Townes's word, while nearly everyone scoffed at Gould's claims. But Gould's determination was unyielding, and he fought everyone who stood in his way, including the U.S. Patent Office, major corporations, and the entire laser industry, until he finally won. Gordon Gould, the courts ruled, had invented the laser.

Laser is a grand story of technology and law. Nick Taylor has extensively interviewed Gould as well as other key participants in the battle over the laser's invention and patents. In this riveting account of genius, rivalry, and greed, he shows just how difficult it is for the legendary lone inventor to prevail when the license to a valuable invention is at stake.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Nick Taylor is the author or coauthor of eight books, including the national bestseller John Glenn: A Memoir, and numerous articles for magazines, including Esquire and The New York Times Magazine.

Genres: Science

304 pages, Hardcover

First published January 15, 2000

About the author

born 1945

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.

Reviews

[Nathaniel · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought this book would be perfect for me. It was listed as a real-life legal drama in the courtroom and the Patent Office between a solo inventor against a Nobel Prize-winning physicist and huge American corporations. And, as I got into it, I appreciated that it was written as a PBS American Experience special would be narrated.
By the end, though, I was less impressed. I have an engineering degree and am a patent attorney. I live patent law. This, I thought, oversimplified the legal aspects for someone who understands patent law, and likely would go right over the head of someone who doesn't. Same with the physics. Too simple for someone who understands basic quantum mechanics, but way too complex for someone who doesn't. I realize that sounds elitist, but I'm concerned recommending this book without such a foundation. If you take out the science and the law, 20% of the book is gone.
I'll give an A for effort that the author tried to distill complex science and one of the most convoluted forms of American law down for the reader. I'm not sure I could do better. In fact, I'm not sure I always do better when dealing with clients. But some red flag should have gone up editing this book that, "Oh crap, this complexity could be a problem."
And speaking of editing, the writing could be better. I hate picking on this book more, but, for example, the same two paragraphs are copied onto both page 196 and 197. It should have been one or the other.
Overall, I was underwhelmed that such an interesting story got mired in the background material. My hopes were probably too high (so keep that in mind with my review), but I'd read something else. Unfortunately, if you're looking for a patent law courtroom drama, I have no idea what that something would be.

[Cynthia · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a really interesting story about the man who invented the laser, and the crazy legal battles he went through to get his patents validated and licensed and to overcome condescension from the scientific community (how could someone without a PhD invent anything useful?) and bullying by large corporate entities. It's a tragedy of our legal system that it costs so much, personally, professionally and financially, for an individual inventor to promote their work and get the benefits due to them. But it's also a testament to this man and others like him who can overcome those obstacles and come out victorious (and sane).

I would have given it another star but it is a bit of work to get through it - this is a dense, complicated, thirty-year story involving politics, patent law, and technology; reading even a well-done summary of that is an undertaking. Easier than reading a patent or a scientific paper, perhaps, but not a light read (no pun intended).

[Kressel Housman · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are three tracks to this book, which, of course, are intertwined: the scientific, the legal, and the personal. I must admit that I got very little out of the science and not much more out of the legal (my main reason for reading), but the personal part fascinated me as I actually knew Gordon Gould; my aunt Marilyn was his third wife. It was pretty weird reading about the women who came before Marilyn, but amazing reading the descriptions of their house, a place I've actually visited. Even their dogs were in the book! Otherwise, it's a highly technical book, so if you aren't up for the whole thing, read the Eureka moment in which he figured out how to build the laser and the chapter near the end which contains the final victorious courtroom argument.

[Matt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gordon Gould invented the laser in 1957 and spent the next 30 years fighting to get his patent approved. But it worked out okay in the end, because by the time the patent was issued lasers had become a huge industry so he became a millionaire from the licensing fees and retired to a life of leisure. The end

[Richp · Rating 3 out of 5]

As an entertaining story this is nothing special. It is a good exposition on how power works in USA; not the physical definition of course.

The reader will not learn much about lasers despite all the technical jargon.