Theodore Maiman

Created the world's first working laser against scientific establishment skepticism

Theodore Maiman (1927–2007) built the first functional laser in 1960 using a ruby crystal – a breakthrough dismissed by peers who deemed it "a solution looking for a problem". While Bell Labs and others pursued complex gas-based systems, Maiman's 5-centimeter ruby rod device (now at the Smithsonian) revolutionized physics through elegant simplicity.

This underdog innovation birthed industries from barcode scanners to laser surgery. Over 1 million patents later, Maiman's underexplored approach exemplifies disruptive thinking. Despite Nobel snubs, his Hughes Research Lab prototype (cost: $50,000 vs competitors' millions) remains the genesis of photonics – enabling fiber optics, quantum computing, and interstellar communication.