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This Defense Intelligence Reference Document from the Defense Intelligence Agency, dated 1 November 2010, was produced under the Advanced Aerospace Weapon System Applications (AAWSA) Program. It describes nanosatellite technologies and proposes launching nanosats into orbit with laser Lightcraft propulsion. It also covers a weapon mission selection study and multi-megawatt laser options. The author recommends that the Department of Defense and NASA bring Lightcraft R&D back to the United States and restart the X-50LR flight demonstration program.
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UNCLASSIFIED,' }P8"1 8PPll!l"'I! l!l!il! 8111!¥ Chapter 4: Summary of Multi-Megawatt Laser Study for Lightcraft Propulsion Applications SUMMARY OF LASER STUDY PERFORMED BY TEXTRON SYSTEMS In 2002, V. Hasson (TEXTRON Systems Corporation) conducted a study of candidate multi-megawatt laser systems for laser Lightcraft propulsion [29]. Candidate high-power/high-energy lasers identified in the study: • Carbon Dioxide (CO2) Laser: technical issues include large wavelength and atmospheric absorption of the laser beam. • Carbon Monoxide (CO) Laser: technical issues include large wavelength, atmospheric absorption of the laser beam, and toxicity of the lasing fuel (CO gas). • Hydrogen Fluoride (HF) or Deuterium Fluoride (DF) Laser: technical issues include atmospheric absorption of the laser beam, corrosive lasing fuel chemicals, pulse energy, running cost, and beam quality. • Chemical Oxygen-Iodine Laser (COIL): technical issues include fuel chemicals, pulse energy, and running costs. • Bulk Slab Solid-State Laser (BSSSL): technical issues include cost, average power, and run duration. The first four gas dynamic and chemical laser candidates have already demonstrated megawatt-class average beam output power. The study then reviewed the development, testing and operational legacy of the first candidate laser technology, which included a review of the various system architectures that use other gas mixtures combined with CO2. The study recommended a new design for a 10 MW (beam output power) electron gun-driven CO2/gas mixture laser because this technology does not require additional R&D and can be implemented now. The other gases selected for the lasing fuel are N2 and H2, which, in combination with CO2, offer superior performance over systems using helium. However, very recent technologically disruptive innovations led to the 10-fold increase in the beam output power of bulk slab SSLs and their newly emergent solid-state cousin, called high-power fiber lasers, which has made these devices more competitive with high-power chemical and gas dynamic lasers on the basis of average beam power, peak beam power, electrical wall plug and optical efficiencies, cost, complexity, mass, and size. Free-electron lasers are another class of laser technology that was not reviewed by Hasson, but recent technological innovations are accelerating their development to the point where their present average beam output power of 20 kW will be increased to 100 kW or higher within the next 12 to 24 months following the publication of this report. The output beams of several of these laser devices can be optically combined to produce a single beam with megawatt-class average output power. It is for this reason that we will summarize their technology in Summary of Emergent High-Power Solid-State and Free-Electron Laser Technologies section. 42 UNCLASSIFIED//509 AFSIQIJl1k W&li 8HLV
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Report, from the dia collection. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is under it. 77 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.