Download or read book High Power Optical Cavity Design and Concept of Operations for a Shipboard Free Electron Laser Weapon System written by Timothy S. Fontana and published by . This book was released on 2003-12-01 with total page 94 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A megawatt (MW)class Free Electron Laser (FEL) as a point defense weapon system may lead to a revolution in anti-ship missile defense. Deep magazine low cost per shot proportional engagement capability and speed of light energy delivery provide the FEL with unmatched advantages over kinetic energy weapon systems. Before an FEL is made feet deployable stability system parameter optimization and operational utility all interest be taken into account. A short Rayleigh length FEL design is being considered in order to reduce system size and mitigate resonator minor damage. A short Rayleigh length thought can lead to vibrational sensitivities which must be studied. This thesis demonstrates that utilizing currently available technology and properly defined parameters a short Rayleigh length FEL should be able to achieve a MW of power. This thesis will also establish the viability of the FEE as a fleet deployable point defense weapon system through the development of a Concept of Operations (CONOPS) which draws from current naval warfare doctrine.
Download or read book The Shipboard Employment of a Free Electron Laser Weapon System written by Gregory G. Allgaier and published by . This book was released on 2003-12-01 with total page 88 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A megawatt (MW) class Free Electron Laser (FEL) shows promise as a new weapon for anti-ship cruise missile defense. An FEL weapon system delivers energy at the speed of light at controllable energy levels, giving the war fighter new engagement options. Considerations for this weapon system include employment, design, and stability. In order to reach a MW class laser, system parameters must be optimized and the high power optical beam must be appropriately managed. In a high power FEL, the optical beam could heat and ultimately damage the optical cavity mirrors. One proposed solution is a short Rayleigh length design, which lowers the intensity on the mirrors, but increases sensitivity to vibrations. This thesis shows a that short Rayleigh length FEL will remain stable using current technology and can be designed to achieve a MW of power. Scenarios are then presented to explore some of the engagement options associated with this weapon system.
Download or read book Defense Science Board Task Force on High Energy Laser Weapon Systems Applications written by and published by DIANE Publishing. This book was released on with total page 232 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book High power Amplifier Free Electron Lasers written by and published by . This book was released on 2006 with total page 60 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The free electron laser (FEL) is among the latest technologies of interest to the U.S. military, in particular, the Navy. In naval applications, FEL laser would serve as a self-defense weapon system, protecting the ship from an array of threats including anti-surface cruise missiles and small boats. This system's potential range and deep magazine makes it ideal as point defense against incoming missiles. Its inexpensive cost of only a few dollars per engagement and multi-mission capability makes this future weapon system superior to the short-range missile-defense systems employed today. The most powerful FEL is currently located in Jefferson Lab, operating at 10 kW, two orders of magnitude short of the 1 MW power level required for weapons application. This thesis will describe the components and theory of operation of the FEL, as well as analyze two competing designs for the next step in the evolution of the future weapon system, the 100 kW FEL, proposed by Brookhaven and Los Alamos National Labs. Due to advances in NPS simulation techniques for the amplifier configuration, a more in depth analysis including the effects of electron beam tilt and shift is performed for the first time on these proposed designs.
Download or read book Scientific Assessment of High Power Free Electron Laser Technology written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2009-04-06 with total page 66 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book presents a scientific assessment of free-electron-laser technology for naval applications. The charge from the Office of Naval Research was to assess whether the desired performance capabilities are achievable or whether fundamental limitations will prevent them from being realized. The present study identifies the highest-priority scientific and technical issues that must be resolved along the development path to achieve a megawatt-class free-electron laser. In accordance with the charge, the committee considered (and briefly describes) trade-offs between free-electron lasers and other types of lasers and weapon systems to show the advantages free-electron lasers offer over other types of systems for naval applications as well as their drawbacks. The primary advantages of free-electron lasers are associated with their energy delivery at the speed of light, selectable wavelength, and all-electric nature, while the trade-offs for free-electron lasers are their size, complexity, and relative robustness. Also, Despite the significant technical progress made in the development of high-average-power free-electron lasers, difficult technical challenges remain to be addressed in order to advance from present capability to megawatt-class power levels.
Download or read book Anti Ship Missile Defense and the Free Electron Laser written by Paul Herbert and published by . This book was released on 1998-12-01 with total page 80 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In order to improve ship self-defense against sea-skimming missiles, several concepts, such as the free electron laser, high-power microwaves, and the Phalanx gun system are reviewed and evaluated in this thesis. Phalanx computer simulations show that Phalanx is an inadequate means of protection. High-power microwaves are found to damage electronics, but calculations show limitations due to diffraction and the possibility of shielding. This thesis evaluates several damage mechanisms caused by the free electron laser's ultra- short picosecond pulse. Theories and experiments predicting the laser damage from short picosecond pulses are reviewed and applied to the fel weapon design. It is found that there may be a significant advantage to the ultra-short pulse format of an FEL weapon; as a result, new experiments are planned. As MW FELs are not yet a reality, this thesis uses computer simulations to explore FEL operation for many values of the electron pulse length, peak current and cavity desynchronism in order to explain recent Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility (TJNAF) experimental observations of high average power.
Download or read book Atmospheric Propagation Simulations and Boeing s High Average Power Free Electron Laser written by Luis Ramos and published by . This book was released on 1995 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The development of a high average power FEL for military applications, whether shipboard or not, represents a significant advancement in technology over present weapons systems design. The FEL has significant advantages over conventional kinetic systems and other classical high-energy laser systems. The rapid response, wavelength tunability, and infinite magazine make the FEL a highly desirable shipboard weapon system. The initial pan of this thesis examines the advantages of a FEL over a conventional kinetic weapon. Section II explores the atmospheric phenomenan that affects the propagation of a laser beam enroute to its target. Section III presents the Boeing FEL proposal followed by the theory of the FEL. Lastly, in Sections V, VI, simulations are conducted to analyze the FEL's feasibility.
Download or read book Total Ship Integration of a Free Electron Laser FEL written by Eric J. Anderson and published by . This book was released on 1996-09-01 with total page 64 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: High-power Free Electron Lasers (FELs), capable of stopping an incoming anti-ship missile, can be an effective addition to the self-defense system of a modem naval combatant. A shipboard FEL must be compact, efficient, and capable of reliable operation in a naval environment. This thesis explores the feasibility of integrating a 1MW infrared FEL aboard a surface combatant from a Total Ships Systems perspective. A study of system aspects including vibrational effects and ship/weapon interfaces will be addressed to determine the overall ship impact A 1 MW FEL requires 10 MW of electrical power from the shipboard prime power system if run continuously or approximately 2 MW using energy storage. A DDG-51 Arleigh Burke class Destroyer has sufficient reserve generating capacity to produce the required electrical power for the FEL. This prime power electrical distribution system is compatible with the ship's main propulsion gas turbines and weighs 42900 kg and occupies 35 m3. Shipboard vibrations, which will have the greatest influence on the FEL, are generally characterized at frequencies below 50 Hz and have amplitudes approaching 900 micrometers. The effect of these vibrations can be reduced to an acceptable level which will permit continuous operation of the FEL in the maritime environment. From a Total Ship Systems perspective the FEL can be accommodated in a DDG-51 class Destroyer with negligible impact.
Download or read book Prime Power for Shipboard High average Power FELs written by Robert Allen Lyon and published by . This book was released on 1994 with total page 86 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: High-power free electron lasers (FELs), capable of deployment aboard naval combatants, would place a unique and significant demand upon the ship's electrical distribution system. A shipboard FEL must be power efficient, relatively compact, and present a minimum radiation hazard to nearby personnel. The feasibility of deploying an FEL aboard a ship is analyzed from a power system perspective. To produce 1 MW of laser power, it is determined that 6.6 MW of high-voltage dc power is required to drive the FEL when superconductor accelerator technology is employed and 9 MW is required when conventional room temperature accelerator technology is used. The required prime power electrical distribution is easily compatible with the gas turbine engineering plants of modern surface combatants. This distribution will add 22 tons to the ship's displacement and require 22 m3 of the ship's volume to implement. Simulation results show that the FEL would require an undulator with only 16 periods to produce 1 MW for the electron beam parameters developed during the power analysis. This FEL exhibits a large tolerance to electron beam quality. From a power analysis viewpoint, FELs may become a competitive technology for a prospective naval laser weapon.
Download or read book Design and Analysis of an Electron Gun booster and Free Electron Laser Optical Analysis written by Sean P. Niles and published by . This book was released on 2010 with total page 241 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As interest in high power free electron lasers (FELs) has increased, the FEL and accelerator communities have been faced with the need to develop high bunch charge, high repetition rate, low emittance electron sources for use as the driving accelerators for FELs. A novel superconducting, radio-frequency (SRF) gun/booster has been designed by and built for the Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) FEL Beam Physics Lab in collaboration with Niowave, Inc., for studying this electron source regime. The NPS SRF gun/booster operates at 500 MHz and is based upon a quarter-wave structure. It incorporates many features that make it desirable for studying the cathodes and transport regimes necessary to explore high bunch charge beams, including adjustable field focusing, short transport out of the gun, and the ability to change cathode types and materials. After attaining "first beam" in June 2010, the NPS gun has been established as the first SRF electron gun in the United States. Initial results show excellent agreement with simulation with bunch charges of 110 pC and transverse emittance estimates of 4 mm-mrad. Additionally, a modal analysis tool for the NPS FEL simulation software is developed based upon the Hermite-Gaussian basis set. Using a minimization of mode coefficients approach, we decompose output optical fields for amplifier FEL designs and experiments for FEL optimization and comparison of laser output fields.
Download or read book Atmospheric Propagation Simulations and Boeing s High Average Power Free Electron Laser written by Luis Ramos and published by . This book was released on 1995 with total page 53 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The development of a high average power FEL for military applications, whether shipboard or not, represents a significant advancement in technology over present weapons systems design. The FEL has significant advantages over conventional kinetic systems and other classical high-energy laser systems. The rapid response, wavelength tunability, and infinite magazine make the FEL a highly desirable shipboard weapon system. The initial pan of this thesis examines the advantages of a FEL over a conventional kinetic weapon. Section II explores the atmospheric phenomenan that affects the propagation of a laser beam enroute to its target. Section III presents the Boeing FEL proposal followed by the theory of the FEL. Lastly, in Sections V, VI, simulations are conducted to analyze the FEL's feasibility.
Download or read book High Energy Laser Applications in a Surface Combatant written by and published by . This book was released on 2005 with total page 100 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Free Electron Laser (FEL) can provide the naval surface combatant with a directed energy weapon that can be used against a large target set. Due to space constraints in a shipboard installation, an exploration is conducted to show the feasibility of short Rayleigh length FELs using a FEL simulation. Low atmosphere engagements are discussed through the modeling of a turbulence module for laser propagation in cruise missile defense applications. In particular, this thesis explores the difficulties in engaging a short/medium range theater ballistic missile (TBM) in the terminal phase as an engagement scenario in support of littoral operations using HELCoMES, developed by SAIC, as an engagement analysis tool. A concept of operations (CONOPS) for the use of a FEL as an area TBM defensive weapon is explored, using a unitary, high explosive warhead model and extrapolations to other TBM warhead types.
Download or read book Theory for a High Power Free Electron Laser and Tactical Applications written by David J. Frost and published by . This book was released on 1992 with total page 71 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Notted History of Mother Grim written by and published by . This book was released on 17?? with total page 24 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Free Electron and Solid State Lasers Development for Naval Directed Energy written by Aristeidis Kalfoutzos and published by . This book was released on 2002-12-01 with total page 128 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A MW level FEL is being designed with a short a Rayleigh length resonator to increase the spot size at the mirrors and to avoid mirror damage. In this thesis, it is found that it is desirable to focus the electron beam to improve the FEL extraction efficiency. Three-dimensional simulations show that the focused electron beam increases the extraction efficiency far beyond the desired value of 0.7%. It is also found in this thesis that shifting the electron beam off- axis less than 0.3 mm, the efficiency remains above the required value. The proposed FEL design uses high power, short optical pulses whose spectrum% may cover many absorption lines. The absorbed laser energy can heat up the air resulting in defocusing the laser beam (thermal blooming). This thesis shows that thermal blooming is not an issue for a moderate clear atmosphere when the stagnation zone size remains less than 10 m. A transitional step for the development of a MW level FEL weapon is the proposed 100 kW upgrade of the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility's FEL. It has also been shown in this thesis that the use of a step-taper undulator slightly improves the performance of the FEL. Finally, the potential of various high average power solid-state laser designs are reviewed.
Download or read book Free electron Laser Challenges written by and published by . This book was released on 1999 with total page 214 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book High Energy Lasers for Ship Defense and Maritime Propagation written by Vasileios Bouras and published by . This book was released on 2002-12-01 with total page 109 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: High Energy Lasers (HELs) are a new class of weapons that may be of great value to the Navy in the near future. A high-power Free Electron Laser (FEL) is being designed using short Rayleigh-length resonators to increase the spot size at the mirrors and hence avoid mirror damage. Three-dimensional simulations are used to study the effects of an electron beam misalignment (electron beam tilt). This thesis shows that the proposed design is tolerant of typical electron beam misalignments. The performance of a step-tapered undulator is also studied for the 100 kW proposed upgrade of the Jefferson Laboratory FEL. The results of this research show that the gain is above the required threshold for the 100 kW design while the energy spread does not change significantly over any undulator design. The spectrum of the proposed FEL shows that most of the power is concentrated around the fundamental frequency. It is shown in this thesis that smooth FEL pulses can significantly reduce the negative effects of absorption and scattering. Recent HEL science and technology developments are discussed for both Free Electron and Solid State Lasers.
