Initial Development of a Laser Altimeter.

Abstract

A design study was carried out of a small, expendable, self-contained laser altimeter for overwater operation at low altitude. A .904 micrometer Gallium Arsenide laser was used to build a prototype transmitter/ receiver at a cost of less than $600 and small enough to fit inside a 5 inch diameter cylinder, 5 inches long. Tests at a height of 120 feet above the surface of a lake resulted in a signal-to-noise ratio of 6, and validated the trade-off equation used in this study. A second test model, with design improvements incorporated, is predicted to yield a SNR of over 20 for an altitude of 150 meters. (Thesis)

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Sep 01, 1985
Accession Number
ADA161048

Entities

People

  • Joseph P. Gilio

Organizations

  • Naval Postgraduate School

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Advanced Electronics
  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Ground and Sea Platforms

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Altimeters
  • Altitude
  • Amplifiers
  • Angle Of Incidence
  • Atmospheric Attenuation
  • Detection
  • Detectors
  • Diameters
  • Equations
  • Filters
  • Geometry
  • Laser Altimeters
  • Laser Diodes
  • Lasers
  • Measurement
  • Optics
  • Peak Power

Fields of Study

  • Physics

Readers

  • Aerospace Test and Evaluation
  • Computational Modeling and Simulation
  • Pulsed Power and Plasma Physics.

Technology Areas

  • Directed Energy
  • Microelectronics