A defense company based in Tuscon, Arizona has developed a working (reportedly) ray guy. As you can see in the image, the laser gun looks like the little carts they use to tow large aircraft onto the runway.

The device is said to work by using femtosecond lasers. What exactly is a femtosecond? A femtosecond is one millionth of a nanosecond! A nanosecond itself is a staggering one billionth of a second!

The weapon uses femtosecond light pulses to burn thirty foot diameter ionized channels of oxygen into the air that are able to conduct electricity. After these ionized channels are created, the weapon then sends man-made lightning.

The weapon was created wit the intent of using it to destroy bombs before they can strike their targets. To date none of the laser systems have been deployed in Iraq.

Via Defensetech.org