Solid State Laser News

publiusr said:
If nothing else, this would look great as a disintegration barrier—who knows?

https://www.reddit.com/r/19bn7oz
View: https://www.reddit.com/r/&/#12456;&%2312483;&%2312481;%20&%2312398;%20&%2312399;/comments/19bn7oz/kinect_laser_some_python_to_bridge_it_together/
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When I clicked the link, Reddit gave the following error message: "Community not found
There aren’t any communities on Reddit with that name. Double-check the community name or try searching for similar communities."
 
bobbymike said:
www.navytimes.com

Amid Red Sea clashes, Navy leaders ask: Where are our ship lasers?

“We’re 10 years down the road, and we still don’t have something we can field?”
www.navytimes.com www.navytimes.com
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That's a good article, but it does not mention the real reasons that we only have a few prototype DEWs in the field, which are the fitful starts and stops of funding for such systems over the past few decades, with a particular insufficiency of funding for the transition from R&D prototype to fielded system, and all of the government bureaucratic red tape in the transition process.

Part of that last problem is that there is usually a fight between the R&D organizations and the fielded systems program offices as to who is responsible for undertaking and funding the transition development work with the R&D organizations saying they have finished their part at the successful completion of the R&D breadboard/brassboard demonstration phase, and the fielded systems program offices saying the technology readiness level at that stage is insufficient for them to transition it to fielding.

Then the R&D organizations and the program offices stare at each other over the transition valley of death pointing a finger at each other saying that it is the other guy's responsibility to get the technology over that chasm. It's a case of "it's not my job, man."

I saw many good technologies end up stuck in the transition valley of death due to these issues in my 40-year career in lasers and electro-optics R&D working in government labs and as a private contractor.
 
Forest Green said:
www.defensenews.com

US Army’s short-range air defense efforts face review board

The Army is seeking approval for its short-range air defense requirements, which will solidify a program of record for the rapidly developed capability.
www.defensenews.com www.defensenews.com
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Just to be clear, that article is about a requirements review for increment 1 of M-Shorad, which does not include a laser weapon, which is slated for increment 2.

As the article states: "Two more variants of M-SHORAD are coming. The Army has concurrently been working on a 50-kilowatt laser weapon version, known as Directed Energy M-SHORAD, and is in the process of holding a competition to bring a new and improved interceptor replacement for the current Stinger missile. DE M-SHORAD is considered the second increment of the program."
 
The superradiant laser
phys.org

Physicist's model and predictions may have applications in the new generation of superradiant lasers

Theoretical physicist Farokh Mivehvar has investigated the interaction of two collections of atoms emitting light inside a quantum cavity—an optical device consisting of two high-quality, tiny mirrors facing each other that confine the light within a small area for an extended time. The model...
phys.org phys.org
The model and predictions can be implemented and observed in state-of-the-art cavity/waveguide-quantum-electrodynamics experiments and might have applications in the new generation of so-called superradiant lasers.

Conventional and Unconventional Dicke Models: Multistabilities and Nonequilibrium Dynamics

The Dicke model describes the collective behavior of a subwavelength--size ensemble of two-level atoms (i.e., spin-$1/2$) interacting identically with a single quantized radiation field of a cavity. Across a critical coupling strength it exhibits a zero-temperature phase transition from the...
journals.aps.org journals.aps.org
 
publiusr said:
The superradiant laser
phys.org

Physicist's model and predictions may have applications in the new generation of superradiant lasers

Theoretical physicist Farokh Mivehvar has investigated the interaction of two collections of atoms emitting light inside a quantum cavity—an optical device consisting of two high-quality, tiny mirrors facing each other that confine the light within a small area for an extended time. The model...
phys.org phys.org
The model and predictions can be implemented and observed in state-of-the-art cavity/waveguide-quantum-electrodynamics experiments and might have applications in the new generation of so-called superradiant lasers.

Conventional and Unconventional Dicke Models: Multistabilities and Nonequilibrium Dynamics

The Dicke model describes the collective behavior of a subwavelength--size ensemble of two-level atoms (i.e., spin-$1/2$) interacting identically with a single quantized radiation field of a cavity. Across a critical coupling strength it exhibits a zero-temperature phase transition from the...
journals.aps.org journals.aps.org
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Conventional and Unconventional Dicke Models​

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:D
 
I’m sure Phillip would approve…
—about “The Zap Gun”
—have some in-camera blaster bolts:
View: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=y9PbnPDwa3Q

Directed energy news
phys.org

New laser experiment spins light like a merry-go-round

In day-to-day life, light seems intangible. We walk through it and create and extinguish it with the flip of a switch. But, like matter, light actually carries a little punch—it has momentum. Light constantly nudges things and can even be used to push spacecraft. Light can also spin objects if...
phys.org phys.org
phys.org

Laser-focused look at spinning electrons shatters world record for precision

Scientists are getting a more detailed look than ever before at the electrons they use in precision experiments.
phys.org phys.org
phys.org

New maser in a 'shoebox' promises portable precision

Researchers in Imperial College London's Department of Materials have developed a new portable maser that can fit the size of a shoebox.
phys.org phys.org
phys.org

Accelerator-on-a-chip advance steers and accelerates electrons at the microchip scale

Stanford researchers are getting closer to building a tiny electron accelerator based on "accelerator-on-a-chip" technology with broad potential applications in studying physics as well as medical and industrial uses.
phys.org phys.org
phys.org

Conduction-cooled accelerating cavity proves feasible for commercial applications

From televisions to X-ray machines, many modern technologies are enabled by electrons that have been juiced up by a particle accelerator. Now, the U.S. Department of Energy's Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility has worked with General Atomics and other partners to unlock even more...
phys.org phys.org

Weapons
techxplore.com

High-energy laser weapons: How they work, what they are used for

Nations around the world are rapidly developing high-energy laser weapons for military missions on land and sea, and in the air and space. Visions of swarms of small, inexpensive drones filling the skies or skimming across the waves are motivating militaries to develop and deploy laser weapons...
techxplore.com techxplore.com
 
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Army Vice Chief of Staff Gen. James Mingus told Breaking Defense the Army has sent the four DE M-SHORAD Kord Technologies prototypes to Middle East for real-world testing

Includes facing down dust particles " Is it 100 percent ready? Is it going to work perfectly? Probably not, but we’re going to learn from it"

“Our high-energy lasers are so susceptible to weather. That’s why I think this is going to be a great laboratory because anytime there’s a dust storm, anytime there’s that kind of thing, it starts to alter the physics of the light particles that actually shoot that beam,”

“You may have a 50-kilowatt laser, [but] at 10 km [6.2 miles] can you put at least four kW in a centimeter square because … that’s what you need to burn through a quarter inch steel plate?” he asked. “But that’s really hard to get … from a big beam to get the small portion of it on the exact spot to be able to burn at that high intensity and any kind of dust particle or that starts to disrupt that.”

If this experiment series proves fruitful, it could help the service decide if that 50-kilowatt class laser is the right fit, or if it should maybe spend more time looking at a 28-kilowatt option.

Logistics concerns associated with keeping high-energy weapons up and running on the battlefield, where higher tech replacement parts aren’t in plenty. But because the DE M-SHORAD system is still a prototype and not mass, this round of testing is not representative of the exact challenges soldiers will face on the battlefield since the supply chain remains “shallow.”
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Would note no mention of testing in rainy weather, thinking of Northern Europe and Asia, did see mention it rains 150 days a year in Northern Europe. A centimeter sq. which 0.4 inch sq, takes very accurate targeting to continuously sustain for approx. 10 seconds especially if target a light drone bouncing around in the air at 10 km. First mention have seen of a possible lower powered 28 kW laser option and wonder what the thinking is.

breakingdefense.com

EXCLUSIVE: Strykers with 50-kilowatt lasers in CENTCOM for experiment, Army No. 2 says - Breaking Defense

“Is it 100 percent ready? Is it going to work perfectly? Probably not but we're going to learn from it,” Army Vice Chief of Staff Gen. James Mingus told Breaking Defense.
breakingdefense.com breakingdefense.com
 
Archibald said:
Wait, so he was a real life John Osterman ? Aka Dr Manhattan ? :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: (now that's a rather appropriate smiley, when you think about it)

As for Strykers... surely, you can't be serious.
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I'm sure he felt blue afterwards.

All right then, you forced me...

I am serious and don't call me Shirley.
 
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scitechdaily.com

Ion Beams Unleashed: The Nanotechnology Game Changer

The FIT4NANO project has mapped out the expansive applications and future directions of focused ion beam technology, emphasizing its critical role in advancing research and development across multiple disciplines, from microelectronics to life sciences. Processing materials on the nanoscale, prod
scitechdaily.com
 
MBDA Deutschland MILOS-D (Modular Integrated Laser Optic System-Dismounted)



Translated.
This is MILOS-D (Modular Integrated Laser Optic System-Dismounted) developed by the company MBDA Deutschland. It is an evolution of MILOS that began to take shape as far back as 2008, initial studies that, taking advantage of different critical technologies, allowed us to address application demonstrators in the terrestrial environment.


The tests, which took place at the WTD (Wehrtechnische Dienststelle für Waffen) facilities of the German Army in Meppen, took place in 2022 and made it possible to demonstrate its real capabilities and the versatility it can offer to whoever uses it; In principle, it would be intended for the German Infantry, for which new validations have already been scheduled to take place at the end of this year, also in Meppen
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www.defensa.com

El arma láser portátil MILOS-D que se espera dote a la Infantería alemana

Alemania está desarrollando la familia de sistemas láser MILOS que podría tener operativa la variante portátil en 2027
www.defensa.com www.defensa.com
 

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Would note DragonFire was purely a technology demonstrator program with a lot of civilian hardware and as the Naval News write up details and expect many years away from a military capable spec and as understand has no funding.

www.navalnews.com

UK DragonFire team outlines follow-on laser weapon plans - Naval News

Following successful trials, the UK DragonFire team has commenced engineering development efforts intended to...
www.navalnews.com www.navalnews.com
 
Lasers to pump electron beams
phys.org

Researchers generate super-fast electrons with table-top laser systems

In massive particle accelerators, sub-atomic particles (like electrons) are sped up to super-high speeds comparable to the speed of light towards a target surface. The collision of accelerated sub-atomic particles gives rise to unique interactions enabling scientists to obtain a deeper...
phys.org phys.org

Conventionally, laser-based particle accelerators require expensive lasers (in the range of US $1-20 million) and are contained in massive national facilities. A setup as complex as this is able to accelerate electrons to megaelectronvolt (MeV) energies. But can a simpler laser costing only a tiny fraction of the presently used lasers be used for designing comparable schemes of particle acceleration?

In an exciting leap, scientists from the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Hyderabad (TIFRH) have designed an elegant solution to successfully generate MeV (106 eV) temperature electrons at a mere fraction (100 times smaller) of the laser intensity previously thought necessary.

More
www.nature.com

Shaped liquid drops generate MeV temperature electron beams with millijoule class laser - Communications Physics

Typically, mJ lasers generate 50 keV temperature plasma electrons. Here, the authors use mJ laser pulses to chisel a liquid droplet surface and generate an electron temperature of 1 MeV, a feat previously possible only with 100 times more powerful lasers.
www.nature.com www.nature.com

I wonder if this has implications for ion drives.
 
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Gen. Michael Kurilla, CENTCOM boss, March 21 told the House Armed Services Committee he has three 50-kilowatt lasers that are Stryker-based [3 of the 4 prototypes of the DE M-SHORAD] inside Iraq right now. Directed energy is not the panacea, What I tell all the services: Give me systems, we will experiment with them, and we will tell you if it works in a real, live environment.

www.defensenews.com

US testing Stryker-mounted lasers in Iraq amid Middle East drone boom

Laser and microwave weapons are considered critical elements of layered defense, or having different countermeasures ready to thwart different threats.
www.defensenews.com www.defensenews.com
 
www.defensenews.com

US Army refreshes competition for short-range laser

The Army will begin a directed-energy test campaign to find the sweet spot for laser weapons when it comes to lethality, reliability and cost.
www.defensenews.com www.defensenews.com

1711815756516.png

Right now, his office is evaluating 10-, 20-, 50- and 300-kilowatt options for a wide variety of threats and missions. The 300-kilowatt laser is designed for the Indirect Fire Protection Capability, which is a system that will use kinetic, laser and high-powered microwave weapons to destroy threats including rockets, artillery, mortars, drones and cruise missiles. The Army is to receive that laser weapon next year.
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Forest Green said:
www.defensenews.com

US Army refreshes competition for short-range laser

The Army will begin a directed-energy test campaign to find the sweet spot for laser weapons when it comes to lethality, reliability and cost.
www.defensenews.com www.defensenews.com

View attachment 724091
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Lt. Gen. Robert Rasch, the service’s Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technologies Office director speaking. They will evaluate two additional 50 kW platforms next year from nLight and Lockheed Martin to give competition and the designs will be different "aspects like beam quality, affordability and reliability are also expected to differ, in addition to the original four Raytheon DE M-SHORADs, the fourth will be shipped to Iraq to join the others after necessary work done.

Rasch notes “We’ve tested these in labs for decades. Now we’re learning some new lessons on what happens when you operationalize these, when you put them in a really ugly, dirty environment that our soldiers put them in, will need two years to evaluate "probably late ’26, early ’27 time frame" before it becomes a POR, ISD 2030??? Appears cost is a major concern and is driving the need for the competition.

Also mentions the 300 kW laser to be delivered next year, designed for IFPC, and in the same breath mentions high-powered microwaves, though don't know if they have yet to place a contract for a 300 kW HPM?
 

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