The Wide-Beam Multi-Band Laser Profiler (WIMBLER)

WIMBLER will measure temporal signal intensity and laser pointing orientation on the order of kilohertz and create full spatial profiles of beam cross section on the order of seconds. The sensor uses translational and rotational scanning to sample beam profiles in polar coordinates. The optical detector modules are easily swappable to accommodate the UV (350-450 nm), visible (450-800 nm), NIR (1064 nm) and MWIR (3.6-6 m) bands, and laser line filters can be used to further specify the spectral range. For each set of detection modules, respective polarizing filters are set orthogonal to one another so that beam polarization can be determined from intensity ratio. WIMBLER self-adjusts to measure beams of different widths with no manual reconfiguration necessary. The range of motion is sufficient to accommodate >1 m diameter beams, to facilitate long range measurements. WIMBLER is portable enough to be transported for field measurements on a light truck. Control and data readouts are communicated wirelessly to the operator through an intuitive graphical interface. The readouts include a visual of the beam profile together with relevant spatial and temporal parameters, e.g. beam angle, calibrated intensity, polarization, and more.