Deeper Dive into Military Lasers
Ruggedized, MIL-Spec Er:Glass Lasers Tackle SWIR Challenges Head-On
Short wavelength infrared (SWIR) applications like laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS), night vision, range finding, and time-of-flight (ToF) LiDAR benefit from the utilization of rugged, low SWaP (size, weight, and power), q-switched Er:Glass laser transmitters. These applications often require the associated hardware components to be resistant to harsh environmental conditions in the field. Operating temperature range, shock and vibration, and size, weight, and power constraints are among the critical considerations when choosing the right laser transmitter, and the OT series of Erbium Glass lasers, offered by RPMC, checks all the right boxes.
With over 10,000 units in the field, the OT series is a proven technology, operating in some of the more challenging laser environments. Featuring low SWaP OEM modules, the ultra-compact, lightweight design and low power consumption makes the OT Series perfect for integration into handheld portable devices, backpack units, airplanes and more. The unique mono-block cavity design of the OT Series, which include the laser rod, q-switch, and mirrors in an all-in-one package, provide an exceptionally robust and compact laser head. These lasers which are designed specifically for use as laser transmitters meet or exceed the Mil-Spec standard MIL-STD810 for vibration and both transportation and ballistic shock.
Laser range finding is a term used to describe the process of determining the distance to a fixed object. This process is essentially a simplified version of laser radar, and therefore has many of the same requirements as LiDAR lasers. Since we are only considering stationary targets and distance is the only thing being measured, range finding lasers are always pulsed to measure the roundtrip time-of-flight and calculate the distance to the target. Eye safety is a concern for range finding, since they are typically operating over shorter distances and in more populated areas. As a result, most of these lasers operate around 1.5 microns in wavelength, which is considered to be eye-safe because of the extremely high-water absorption.
Night vision active imaging is a process that combines traditional infrared imaging, with time-of-flight (TOF) lidar to produce 3-dimensional images without the need for visible lighting. Active night vision imaging is typically used in high-end surveillance for both military and commercial security systems. In this application, night vision lasers are usually pulsed, 1.5-micron sources with an internal photodiode. The integral photodiode allows for the InGaAs camera to be triggered each time a pulse is fired, ensuring accurate TOF measurements. Additionally, 1.5 microns is the ideal wavelength for night vision lasers because it is considered eye-safe, and therefore does not pose an optical hazard to any individuals who happen to pass through the beam path.
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Laser Source Requirements for Modern Laser Designator Systems
Combat zones can be extremely chaotic. With a massive influx of sensory input, implementing clear communication, rugged tools, and reliable instrumentation is key to a successful mission. One of the most challenging tasks in any aerial combat situation is determining which assets on the ground to target and which ones to avoid. This determination is particularly challenging when enemy assets are camouflaged or hidden amongst civilian assets. Because of this challenge, a practice, commonly referred to as “painting the target,” was developed and has been successfully deployed for many years, allowing ground forces to identify and designate targets for successful engagement by aerial support for superior air control. Of course, on the modern battlefield, soldiers aren’t using cans of spray paint for pilots to attempt target location. Instead, they use portable laser designator systems, designed to illuminate the target with infrared radiation, which is then easily detected and tracked by their aerial counterparts.
Global positioning system (GPS) guided munitions are also an option. However, GPS guided munitions typically have a circular error probability (CEP) of around 5 meters, while the CEP of laser guided munitions is typically 3 to 1 meters. In this application note, we will examine the critical laser requirements for laser designation systems and discuss what types of lasers are ideal for these systems.
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Laser Requirements for Time Gated Active Night Vision Imaging Systems
While theoretically any short-pulsed IR laser can be used for active night vision imaging, it is generally preferable to work in the near-infrared (1.5 microns in particular), because it is simultaneously eye-safe and invisible. The rationale behind this assertion, is that 1.5 microns correspond to the peak absorption coefficient of water, causing the laser light to be absorbed by fluid inside of the human eye before it can damage the retina, making this wavelength ideal for field applications. Operating at 1.5 microns has the added advantage of being shorter than most thermally generated infrared light, but longer than most natural background light in the environment. As a result, the imaging camera can not only be time-gated, but a filter can be used to allow only 1.5 micron light to be collected by the system, effectively eliminating all interference from background light. One example of an ideal laser source for active night vision imaging, is Optitask’s series of q-switched Er:Glass lasers. These lasers are available with both diode-pumped and flashlamp-pumped excitation, depending on your pulse energy requirements, and are also available with both active and passive q-switching. This allows you to choose pulse energies between 2mJ and 10mJ, pulse widths from 9ns to 40ns, and pulse repetition rates from 1Hz to 30Hz.
While theoretically any short-pulsed IR laser can be used for active night vision imaging, it is generally preferable to work in the near-infrared (1.5 microns in particular), because it is simultaneously eye-safe and invisible. The rationale behind this assertion, is that 1.5 microns correspond to the peak absorption coefficient of water, causing the laser light to be absorbed by fluid inside of the human eye before it can damage the retina, making this wavelength ideal for field applications. Operating at 1.5 microns has the added advantage of being shorter than most thermally generated infrared light, but longer than most natural background light in the environment. As a result, the imaging camera can not only be time-gated, but a filter can be used to allow only 1.5 micron light to be collected by the system, effectively eliminating all interference from background light. One example of an ideal laser source for active night vision imaging, is Optitask’s series of q-switched Er:Glass lasers. These lasers are available with both diode-pumped and flashlamp-pumped excitation, depending on your pulse energy requirements, and are also available with both active and passive q-switching. This allows you to choose pulse energies between 2mJ and 10mJ, pulse widths from 9ns to 40ns, and pulse repetition rates from 1Hz to 30Hz.
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Why a Larger Beam Results in a Smaller Spot Size in Laser Designation?
We recently updated a blog post titled “Laser Source Requirements for Modern Laser Designator Systems,” in which we took a deep dive into the fundamentals of laser designation as well as the military’s requirements for such a laser. In that blog post we cited NATO standard STANAG 3733, which required that the laser beam have a divergence small enough so that 90% of its energy is on target 95% of the time assuming a 2.3 x 2.3 m target. We went on to explain that most laser designators are designed to be used at distances up to 5 km. Therefore, one of the most critical factors when choosing a laser source is the beam divergence.
In this post, we are discussing one method for decreasing the beam divergence by increasing the beam size. While this may seem counter-intuitive, it is, in fact, the case that as the collimated beam diameter increases, the beam divergence decreases. This happens for the same reason that a laser diode has a slow and fast axis. That is, whenever light is contained in a small area, it tends to diffract or diverge. The same process happens to the laser beam itself. If a laser is perfectly collimated it is considered to be diffraction limited. This means that the laser beams divergence is solely determined by the area it is confined in, hence its beam diameter. Therefore, when you expand the laser beam to a larger diameter and re-collimate it the divergence will decrease since the light isn’t being squeezed into as small of an area as it once was. As a general rule of thumb, the beam divergence is inversely proportional to the beam diameter. So, every time you double the beam diameter you half the beam divergence.
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Er:Glass Lasers for LIBS in Harsh Environments
Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) is one of the most popular laser based atomic spectroscopy techniques on the market today. Nowadays, LIBS is rapidly becoming an indispensable tool for elemental analysis and is generally viewed as a complementary technique to other elemental methods such as mass spectrometry. LIBS has been deployed in a wide range of industrial and scientific applications including on the surface of Mars, where over 200,000 LIBS spectra have been collected aboard of the Mars Science Laboratory Rover Curiosity.
We offer a wide range of lasers from Optitask depending on the needs of your LIBS application. These lasers are available with both diode and flashlamp pumped excitation depending on your pulse energy requirements and are also available with both active and passive q-switching. This allows you to choose pulse energies between 1mJ and 10mJ, pulse widths from 9ns to 40ns, and pulse repetition rates from 1Hz to 30Hz. All of the Er:Glass lasers offered by Optitask are air-cooled, with conductively cooling requirements as low as 0.8 W for the 1mJ systems and 35W for the 10mJ systems. An additional feature that makes these lasers ideal for LIBS application is the built-in photodiode for which can be used as the trigger signal for the spectrometer to begin the spectral acquisition. This combination of optical performance and environmental stability genuinely make the Optitask lasers the perfect choice for harsh environment field deployable LIBS applications such as mining and scraping.
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How Can We Help?
With over 25 years experience providing MIL-Spec lasers to researchers and OEM manufacturers for integration into various aerospace and military systems, and 1000s of units fielded, we have the experience to ensure you get the right product for the application. Working with RPMC ensures you are getting trusted advice from our knowledgeable and technical staff on a wide range of laser products. RPMC and our manufacturers are willing and able to provide custom solutions for your unique application.
If you have any questions, or if you would like some assistance please Contact Us here. Furthermore, you can email us at info@rpmclasers.com to talk to a knowledgeable Product Manager.
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