HOLOGRAPHIC TARGET CLOAKING FROM TACTICAL LASER DETECTION

ACTIVE AND PASSIVE TECHNIQUES TO CLOAK A TARGET WILL ULTIMATELY DETERMINE ITS ABILITY TO SURVIVE BY AVOIDING DETECTION AND TRACKING. HOLOGRAPHIC TECHNOLOGY HAS THE UNIQUE COMPATIBILITY OF BEING ABLE TO DEFLECT INCOMING RADIATION IN A PATTERN THAT IS DETERMINED WHEN THE HOLOGRAPHIC FILM IS MADE. THUS, THE POSSIBILITY OF HAVING THE BEAM FROM A LASER RANGEFINDER, FOR EXAMPLE, COMPLETELY MISDIRECTED AWAY FROM AN AIRCRAFT (MISSILE) IN A DIRECTION THAT IS ADVANTAGEOUS FOR AVOIDING DETECTION IS CURRENTLY WITHIN THE STATE OF THE ART. HOLOGRAPHIC TECHNOLOGY HAS THE ABILITY TO REJECT VERY NARROW WAVELENGTH BANDS (DELTA LAMBDA = 20NM) OR VERY BROAD BANDS (DELTA LAMBDA = 400NM) OF THE VISIBLE AND INFRARED SPECTRAL REGIONS. HOLOGRAPHIC MIRRORS CAN BE TUNED TO REFLECT SPECIFIC LASER WAVELENGTHS WITH REFLECTIVITIES OF 99.9% (EXPERIMENTALLY MEASURED). IT CAN DO THIS WITH HIGH OPTICAL DENSITY (OD >6). APPLICATIONS OF CLOAKING TO MILITARY DEVICES AND SENSORS FROM TACTICAL LASERS APPEARS STRAIGHTFORWARD.