HIGH ENERGY LASER TARGET PLANE DIAGNOSTIC INSTRUMENTATION (BDI) DEVELOPMENT

THE HIGH ENERGY LASER SYSTEM TEST FACILITY (HELSTF) OPERATED BY THE ARMY ON THE WHITE SANDS MISSILE RANGE (WSMR) IN NEW MEXICO IS CONDUCTING VULNERABILITY AND LETHALITY EFFECTS (VLE) TESTS ON NUMEROUS MATERIALS USING HIGH ENERGY LASERS (HEL). IN ORDER TO DETERMINE THE VULNERABILITY OF THESE MATERIALS, IT IS NECESSARY TO KNOW THE INTENSITY PROFILE AND/OR ENERGY PROFILE OF THE LASER BEAM ON THE TARGET. AS THE COMPUTER MODELING IN VLE GETS MORE COMPLICATED, THERE IS AN INCREASED REQUIREMENT ON THE INTENSITY PROFILE MESUREMENT OF THE BEAM AT THE TARGET PLANE. THE CURRENT BEAM DIAGNOSTICS ARE NOT ADEQUATE FOR THE CURRENT MODELING CAPABILITIES. THE OBJECT OF THIS SBIR TOPIC IS TO: 1) CONDUCT A THOROUGH STUDY OF THE PREVIOUS BEAM DIAGNOSTIC EFFORTS, 2) UNDERSTAND AND DOCUMENT THE PROBLEMS WHICH HAVE PRECEDED THIS EFFORT, AND 3) RECOMMEND AN IMPROVED APPROACH TO BEAM DIAGNOSTICS. THE SUDY WILL BE CONDUCTED BY VISITING WSMR, REVIEWING THE HARDWARE, DOCUMENTATION, AND TEST DATA, WITNESSING TESTS, AND INTERVIEWING GOVERNMENT PERSONNEL. REQUIREMENTS FROM THE VLE MODELERS WILL BE COMPARED TO THE TECHNICAL FEASIBILITY OF AVAILABLE HARDWARE. A TRADE STUDY WILL BE CONDUCTED TO DEVELOP AND SELECT THREE CONCEPTUAL DESIGNS. THIS EFFORT WILL CULMINATE IN THE REVIEW AND DOWN SELECTION OF A SINGLE RECOMMENDED IMPROVED APPROACH TO TARGET PLANE BEAM DIAGNOSTICS. THE GOVERNMENT IS EXPECTED TO BE ACTIVE IN THE WHOLE PROCESS.