The laser rifle was a hand-held energy weapon, the predecessor of the phaser rifle. It was used on Earth as early as the mid 21st century. (TOS novel: Strangers from the Sky) Laser rifles continued to be in use by Starfleet into the 23rd century, until at least 2266. Captain James T. Kirk used a laser rifle to attack a city builder on the planet Zarta. (TOS comic: "Invasion of the City Builders")