Photonic Fabrics for Optical Tagging

The US continues to need improvements in capability to deal with the imminent threat of theft of nuclear weapons from a foreign storage facility by a terrorist cell with insider assistance. At the heart of this challenge is the need to develop alternative signature exploitation technologies, taggants, that can be easily observed using sensors capable of detection over large areas and at high resolutions. One approach to addressing this vulnerability is to locate, monitor and track WMD from strategic distances using airborne sensors operating at HSI, IR, radar, lidar, FTIR, among others. The proposed Phase I and Phase II effort is to develop a taggant that can be covertly integrated onto assets that require tracking. The proposed tracking system will allow identification of the tag from distances of 10 km or greater and can be identified using either an active or passive querying system. Phase I fabricated and measured the infrared reflectance spectrum of fiber samples for their IR properties. This effort verified the properties were as expected from computational models and simulations and demonstrated the feasibility of these fibers being utilized as an optical taggant material. In Phase II the fibers will be modified in their optical layered design in order to give a specific type of emissivity contrast which is easily observable and distinctive compared to background. Following laboratory experiments, optical measurements will be carried out in a field test environment with standoffs up to 1 km, possibly using actual drone platforms. Modelling will show the taggant size/optical system aperture to allow identification of the tags from a variety of distances, up to LEO. The taggant materials will be tested for environmental ruggedness to stand up to weather, sun and humidity. Covert versions of the material will be demonstrated. Commercial Applications and Other Benefits: Beyond its utility for non-proliferation, PBFT technology will find uses for military friend-foe identification, homeland security, geophysics or cold regions research, satellite-visible labeling of ocean shipping containers, trains or trucks, tracking of waste in ocean currents, and other commercial and environmental applications.