The Start of High Power Microwave Research at the Air Force Weapons Laboratory

Abstract

This report is a brief history of the beginnings of the High Power Microwave Program at the predecessor organization to the Air Force Research Laboratory, i.e., the Air Force Weapons Laboratory at Kirtland AFB, New Mexico. The program grew out of concern for the vulnerability of electronics on Air Force systems in the early 1980s. The more sophisticated the solid state electronics and integrated circuits employed by the Air Force became, the more susceptible they were to upset and damage from electromagnetic radiation from a variety of sources, including high power microwaves. The Air Force Weapons Laboratory was poised to take on this new technology challenge from its decades of research on nuclear electromagnetic pulse and its effects on electronics.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jun 09, 1999
Accession Number
ADA368517

Entities

People

  • J. A. Gaudet
  • W. L. Baker

Organizations

  • Air Force Research Laboratory

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Advanced Electronics
  • Electronic Warfare
  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Force
  • Air Force Research Laboratories
  • Command And Control Systems
  • Directed Energy Weapons
  • Electromagnetic Pulses
  • Electromagnetic Radiation
  • Electronics
  • Government Procurement
  • Governments
  • High Power Microwaves
  • Microwaves
  • Military Research
  • Radar
  • Radiation
  • Solid State Electronics
  • Weapons
  • Weapons Effects

Fields of Study

  • Physics

Readers

  • Aerospace Research.
  • Integrated Circuit Design and Technology.
  • Strategic Security Studies

Technology Areas

  • Directed Energy
  • Microelectronics