Research Summaries

Back Multi-Mode Propagation and Laser Accelerator

Fiscal Year 2013
Division Graduate School of Engineering & Applied Science
Department Physics
Investigator(s) Vigil, Ricardo
Sponsor Space & Naval Warfare Systems Command (Navy)
Summary A key attribute of all weapon-class lasers is good optical beam quality. It is desirable that they operate in the transverse Gaussian mode. For weapons applications, a good mode quality is desired because it delivers the highest intensity on target ensuring a high level of lethality. Combining a few higher-order modes may allow for corrective optics to single out the best modes for the resonator optics and/or atmospheric propagation. Multi-mode propagation, i.e. the combination of two lower-order Laguerre-Gaussian (LG) modes, may be advantageous for beam director optics and atmospheric propagation. The mixing of a few of these modes may produce a transverse mode shape that minimizes intensity at the central optic of the beam director and minimizes thermal blooming during propagation to the target. As the light propagates, the optical phase evolves such that maximum intensity is delivered on target.
Keywords
Publications Publications, theses (not shown) and data repositories will be added to the portal record when information is available in FAIRS and brought back to the portal
Data Publications, theses (not shown) and data repositories will be added to the portal record when information is available in FAIRS and brought back to the portal