Novel Directed Energy Options in Ballistic Missile Defense

High power microwave (HPM) sources have been developed over the past few decades for many important DoD missions ranging from electronic warfare to intentional EMI to impulse radar. One important area of development for HPM devices is ballistic missile defense (BMD). HPM systems and techniques may be able to disrupt, damage, or destroy critical elements of adversary ballistic missile systems, rendering them ineffective. However, the goal is to be able to have these effects at long standoff distances, which is often difficult given the limited space available on appropriate BMD platforms, such as interceptor missiles. There are several ways to improve the standoff range of an HPM system. The first is to increase the total power on target. The second is to increase the effectiveness at a given power level by improving coupling and damage effects. ASR Corporation (ASR) has been working in conjunction with Prof. J. Scott Tyo at the University of Arizona (UA) for the past several years on the development of compact, mesoband HPM sources based on conventional source and antenna topologies. We have developed a range of prototype systems designed to fit in small volumes on mobile platforms such as UAVs. The work proposed here will take the antenna technologies further toward a finalized end product.