Please click the link below for more information. A laser gyro is a ring laser which means that it has 2 laser counter-propagating beams traveling in a closed path (ring). Because each beam has equal intensity, it forms regions of high electromagnetic field energy density called anti-nodes. Since both beams usually travel at the same speed, these anti-nodes stand still in the frame of the laser gyro. However, when the laser gyro rotates, the beam going in the direction of rotation travels slower with respect to the laser gyro frame and the opposite beam travels faster. This results in the anti-nodes moving backward, relative to the rotating frame of the enclosure. The number of anti-nodes moving past a give mirror during one rotation of the frame is pi/4 times the total number of anti-nodes. By counting the number of anti-nodes that have moved past a mirror, we have a measure of the total rotated angle. Number of Nodes Moved: Rotate Clockwise Rotate Counter Clockwise Rotation Speed Laser Gyro Information