Compact, Lightweight CO2 Lasers for SDIO Applications
Abstract
During the past decade, substantial investments have been made in the development of gas discharge pumped CO2 lasers for military and civilian applications. The DoD community and SDIO in particular is developing compact, lightweight CO2 lasers for airborne and spaced based radar applications directed toward target ranging, imaging, and discrimination. These CO2 laser systems are being developed under the SDIO Lowkater Program, in the Airborne Laser Experiment (ALE) Program by the Army/SDC and in Lincoln Laboratory's space based CO2 laser radar research and development program. The three major components of a CO2 laser radar are the laser head and flow loop, the pulsed power system and the optics and beam control system. In this report, SRL presents a novel self sustained discharge concept that should result in the stable and efficient extraction of large specific energies (50 J/liter atmosphere) for pulse lengths as long as 100 micro s. Keywords: Compact carbon dioxide lasers, Self sustained, Discharge lasers, Carbon dioxide lasers.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Apr 11, 1989
- Accession Number
- ADA207052
Entities
People
- Jonah Jacob