Remote Sensing of Electric Fields

Electric field sensing can provide important signatures for revealing the operations adversaries that involve electrical power transmission and use. A novel approach to the remote sensing of associated electric fields is proposed that can sense field intensities similar to that found near common electrical hardware. Through a unique infrared Lidar (Light Detection and Ranging) system design, the electric field can be indirectly detected through its impact on the properties of the surrounding air. Operating at eye-safe laser wavelengths, such a system can have an effective sensing range exceeding 10 km. The Phase I effort will experimentally confirm the detectability of electric fields of the magnitude and frequency associated with common power lines in a laboratory test system, and provide an initial design concept that can implement this standoff detection method. The Phase II program will develop and test a system capable of standoff detection approaching distances as large as 10 km. It will also address the potential for improved sensitivity so as to assist in the location of hidden facilities that emit electric fields. The ultimate goal is to develop an airborne system capable of detecting facilities in denied access areas.