Advanced Electronics and Optics
Abstract
Advanced Electronics and Optics is a series of efforts addressing advanced manufacturing technologies for a wide range of applications such as sensors, radars, power generation, switches, and optics for defense applications. Focal points are productivity and efficiency gains in the defense manufacturing base to accelerate delivery of technical capabilities to impact current warfighting operations, and manufacturing technologies to reduce the cost, acquisition time and risk of our major defense acquisition programs. Future efforts will focus on advances in fuel cells, lasers, enhanced acuity microdisplays, and transparent ceramics for opto-mechanical and armor applications. The Transparent Ceramic Initiative will address DoD applications for electro-optics, including fibers, films, and bulk solid state components, such as windows. Typical materials include: sapphire, ALON, and spinel. Transparent ceramics offer the potential for improved ballistic strength for battlefield armor and personnel protection. Investments include but are not limited to: high strength spinel scale-up, Nanocomposite Optical Ceramics (NCOC) powder scale-up, infrared windows, and curved transparent ceramics. Projects: Silicon Carbide (SiC) High Efficiency Power Switches (FY 2015): Enable a new class of power electronics that allows flexible new architectures at higher voltages, higher frequencies, less volume and weight, higher temperatures, higher efficiency (reduced fuel consumption), and better power quality that allows flexible architectures with enhanced electronics in a smaller footprint. Demonstrated on a naval power conditioning application, reduced the weight by 90% and volume by 30%. Reduce high voltage pulsed diode $/Amp from $0.40 at 6kv to $0.27 at >20kV. Applications include Army - Platform Modernization Program Navy - DDG51 Flight III (Electric Ships Office, PMS-320); and Air Force – F-35, F-22 (MEA & F-35 Offices). Photonic Crystals for Thermal Beacons (FY 2015): Drive affordability, manufacturability, and quality photonic crystal production to enable Identification of Friend or Foe (IFF), producing a thermal beacon using photonic crystals. Systems impacted include the Thermal Beacon, Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) that use Mid-Wave Infrared (MWIR) including MQ1/MQ9/AC-130/F15/F18/Sniper Pod/Litening Pod, MWIR - Hand Held Imagers, as well as In-line WPN’s Sights such as the HISS and INOD Blk3. The benefit is immediate upon reaching the battlefield. Benefits to the Warfighter include decreased fratricide and ability to employ new tactics, techniques and procedures (TTP). Mini Short-wave Infrared (SWIR) Cameras and Imagers (FY 2015-2016): Expedite the transition of 10 um (TEC)-less SWIR cameras to the warfighter and develop wafer level processing techniques to improve yield and reduce contaminants in the SWIR focal plane array (FPA)/ camera assembly. Will establish the industrial base for SWIR technology systems and components. Reduced unit cost allows more individuals to carry imagers; 6x improved cost, reduced from $30K to $5K; 3x reduced size from 3cm3 to 1cm3; 3x reduced weight from 120 g to 40 g. Applications include COSI, INOD, COS3, AWST, Joint Effect Targeting System (JETS), IDNST, PAWS, and MTS-B. Mini Vis - SWIR Cameras and Imagers (FY 2016): Develop a manufacturing capability to produce one camera that can see the entire spectral band of Visible, Near Infrared (NIR), and Short-wave Infrared (SWIR); while being compatible with visible, NIR, and SWIR laser pointers and illuminators. Applications include: COSI, INOD, COS3, Advanced Weapon Sight Technology (AWST), Joint Effect Targeting System (JETS), Integrated Day/Night Sight Technology (IDNST), PAWS, and Multispectral Targeting System (MTS-B). Manufacturability of Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Lasers (VCSELs) – Phase I (FY 2015) Develop better performance for laser sights, laser illuminators, and laser designators as measured by size, weight and power and wider scale deployment of critical laser-based systems due to lower cost. Provide clearer illumination critical for positive Identification (ID) Friend vs. Foe, facial ID, weapons ID; covert wavelengths; improve packaging (10-100x smaller and lighter products); increase reliability (10,000 hrs.). Applications include PUMA, RAVEN, TigerShark, Anubis, Spectre-FINDER, Speckles, TigerMoth, WAAS, PAWS, IPODS, AngelFire, MAV-OBAT, nLoss, LOS-short, CLRF, Joint Effect Targeting System (JETS), IDNST, TLDS, Big Safari, OEF, OIF, STINGER, ARGUS, and others. Manufacturability of Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Lasers (VCSELs) – Phase II (FY 2016-2017): Develop the capability to produce a Multi-Function Laser Illuminator and Pointer that delivers the functionality of five different devices (Green, NIR, and Short-wave Infrared (SWIR) Laser Pointers plus NIR and SWIR illuminators) in a single, high-power, lightweight unit, which would give the warfighter commonality with all other weapon systems and be covert. Would provide the SWIR VCSEL a three-fold increase in efficiency and output power to meet critical needs for covert illumination in both High Definition and SXGA formats. Applications include: PUMA, RAVEN, TigerShark, Anubis, Spectre-FINDER, Speckles, TigerMoth, WAAS, PAWS, IPODS, AngelFire, MAV-OBAT, nLoss, LOS-short, CLRF, Joint Effect Targeting System (JETS), IDNST, TLDS, Big Safari, OEF, OIF, STINGER , and ARGUS, others. Vital Infrared Sensor Technology Acceleration (VISTA) High Temp Mid-Wave Infrared (MWIR) Detectors (FY 2015-2017): Establish a critical domestic industrial base for MWIR focal plan arrays (FPA) having capabilities in III-V antimony-based Infrared (IR) FPAs to reduce size, weight, power, and cost while increasing yield and operability as an alternative to current technology. Will achieve wafer production scale-up to 40-50 wafers per month while shortening sensor turn-on and cool down time by 50%, extending cooler lifetimes 150% - 200% as a result of reduced stress during temperature cycling, and substantially reducing the sensor lifecycle maintenance cost. Applications include: Air Force: EODAS Enhancement (F-35), EOTS Enhancement (F-35), LWIRST (F-15), Targeting System Enhancements (MQ-9, F-16), Overhead Persistent Infrared (OPIR); Army: Next Gen FLIR, Degraded Visual Environment, Rotary Wing Pilotage; Navy: Shipboard Multifunction Sensors (APDIS), Overhead Persistent Surveillance for USMC, UAV, and Navy: BAMS, F-18 (Advanced IRST), EO/IR Standard Integration System (EISIS), and Affordable Modular Panoramic Photonics Mast. Improved Focal Plane Array (FPA) – Hyperspectral – Phase II (FY 2015-2017): Demonstrate utility of III-V based FPAs for Long-Wave Infrared (LWIR) Hyperspectral (HIS) applications. Up to $1M/year/sensor reduction in system life cycle costs compared to arsenic-doped silicon blocked impurity band (Si:As BIB) detectors. Significant reduction in up-front costs compared to Mercury Cadmium Telluride (MCT). Improved reliability, maintainability, and availability, along with increased detection range. Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED) Microdisplays - Phase II (FY 2016-2017): Establish manufacturing capability for producing an ultra-high resolution, high brightness, high contrast, full color microdisplay at a low unit cost. Mature and combine manufacturing processes: Silicon on Insulator (SOI) and Direct Patterning technologies to enable a 5X improvement in yield and 5X longer lifetime of displays, reducing life cycle costs. $$221.7M savings for aviation and Enhanced Visual Acuity (EVA) goggles (27,700 displays between 2017-2032) x $8K/unit savings). Applications include F-35 Heads-up Helmet Mounted Display System, Apache, EVA, F-18, F-15, F-16, affordable color/monochrome displays with high brightness and high contrast to enable Warfighter to fully use sensors and cuing/augmented reality hardware. Radar Affordability Initiative (RAI) (FY 2015): RAI offers DoD common, modular building blocks performing like functions across radar and electronic warfare (EW) systems. The RAI approach enables acquisitions to complete subcomponents within a design. The DoD also receives Government Purpose Rights (GPR) for each investment, enabling competition, and breaking sole source dependencies. At the completion of RAI projects, DoD will have GPR for T/R Modules, solid state amplifiers, and limiters. Additionally, the DoD will have evidence that applying the common, modular approach shortens hardware upgrade times. The RAI Affordable Transmit-Receive Modules (ATRM) project is aimed at reducing the cost of the G/ATOR T/R Module (while maintaining module form factor, performance, and reliability) through incorporating the functionality of three separate regulator chips into a single, super regulator chip and development of a high power amplifier (HPA) 2nd source. Radar Affordability Initiative – SPS-49 (FY 2016-2017): The SPS-49 program is focused on the design and development of an affordable upgrade of the AN/SPS-49A(V)1 below deck equipment with modern, sustainable, maintainable equipment in a high reliability, high availability operational environment. This upgrade program will design, fabricate and test three Engineering Development Model 49AUs built using production processes and designed with an open system architecture which is easily maintained and easily upgraded. The 49AUs will be installed on U. S. Navy ships for operational testing and evaluation. Nanocomposite Optical Ceramics (NCOC)(FY 2016-2017): Advance manufacturing maturity of NCOC to replace sapphire. The large reduction of emissivity at elevated temperatures experienced during flight makes NCOC more favorable for a missile dome by increasing the signal to noise ratio. Effort will focus on scale-up NCOC dome manufacturing processes to meet projected AIM-9X full rate production quantities.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Accomplishment
- Publication Date
- Oct 01, 2017
- Source ID
- 5787065453f5b0678d2253e1200ba22e