Lightsabers in Starwars

Emily Lottes, Brianna Curro and Ben Hart

Mr. Goldner

Period 7

  "This was the formal weapon of a Jedi Knight. Not as clumsy or random as a blaster. More skill than simple sight was required for its use. An elegant weapon. It was a symbol as well. Anyone can use a blaster or a fusioncutter—but to use a lightsaber well was a mark of someone a cut above the ordinary."

  ―Obi-Wan Kenobi

In the Star Wars saga, the Order of the Jedi is distinguished from others men and alien races by their Lightsabers. A light saber is a sword-like weapon formed by the light of a crystal. A Lightsaber is a weapon of rank and honor for the Jedi because it requires skill to learn how to properly wield it.

Lightsabers, as portrayed in Star Wars, are infeasible given current technology. The energy that is required to power a laser sword is tremendously high, especially considering the power source needs to fit in a sword hilt. The closest tool we have available to a Lightsaber is a military grade, hand-held laser. Military grade hand-held lasers are strong enough to light paper on fire and burn holes through ping-pong balls. Another alternative to a real lightsaber is a thermal lance, which is a rod-shaped construction tool used to melt metals by heating up oxygen to extreme temperatures. However, both lasers and thermal lances fall short of creating a real Lightsaber as depicted in Star Wars. Lightsabers in Star Wars act as solid blades and are also capable of deflecting laser-based projectiles.