Payload-reduced High-gain Guided-wave Nonlinear Optical Wave-front Correction System

Space Based Lasers (SBL) and Airborne Lasers (ABL) require high brightness to achieve the optimized performance of energy on target at minimum weight, which can only be achieved by minimizing wavefront-error on the laser-beam. Optical phase conjugate (OPC)shows promise in wavefront correction. However, the practical realization of such an optical system met the required specifications is not available from current technology.Omega Optics proposes a lightweight low-threshold high-gain optical wavefront correction system for SBL and SBL by combination of self-projection optical system and guided-wave OPC technology.The proposed system has ultra-low threshold (several ¿W), scaling ability to large aperture (over 4 m in diameter) and higher power (up to hundreds watts) at minimum design weight. The proposed integrated OPC-mirror for this efficient wavefront correctionis based on resonantly-enhanced four-wave mixing in high-gain resonant-enhancement waveguide, which can provide ultra-long interaction-length (over 15 cm) for four-wave mixing to produce high OPC-reflectivity up to 30 dB.In Phase I, the feasibility of the proposed technology will be demonstrated with the control of wavefront-error within a fraction of a laser wavelength across the whole outlet laser-beam and the threshold of several micro-watts, laying a solid foundationfor the Phase II & III programs. The proposed nonlinear optical wavefront correction system will provide the feasibility of practical realization of Space Based Lasers (SBL) and Airborne Lasers (ABL) weapon system at the minimum design weight. This technology promise a new generationof low payload low threshold high-gain optical wave-front correction system for the applications of SBL and ABL in weapon system, remote sensing, object laser tracking and laser communications in aero-space and aviation. The potential commercial uses ofthe technology include material processing for manufacturing of semiconductor or MEMS manufacturing, improving the beam quality of commercial laser systems, and lowering the cost astronomical laser guide star systems.