Frequency Agile Seed Laser for Orbital Doppler-Shift Compensation

The overall goal of the SBIR effort is to develop a frequency-agile, stand-alone, space-hardened diode-based seed laser with options for locking and frequency agility to compensate for doppler shift during orbit. This US-manufactured platform will be applicable for seeding next generation Nd:YAG lasers currently being developed for high-priority-designated aerosol missions (single- and multi-channel backscatter), for Explorer missions for trace gas and methane sensing, as well as for future-looking Incubation missions. Under this Phase I effort, AdvR proposes to demonstrate the feasibility of programmable doppler-shift compensation for a compact, diode-based seed laser, as well as to provide a baseline design for a stand-alone, frequency agile, space-qualified system to be built and tested to TRL 6 by the end of the Phase II effort. This technology directly addresses the need for state-of-the-art lidar technology with an emphasis on compactness, efficiency, reliability, lifetime, and high performance, and will advance the accuracy of atmospheric space-based measurements, as described in the NASA SBIR topic S.101 Lidar Remote Lidar Sensing Technologies.