Lasers and Directed Energy Weapons thread

[wjfox]

Chinese military scientists claim to have achieved a ‘huge breakthrough’ on laser weapon technology

- High-energy laser weapons can now operate ‘infinitely’ thanks to a new cooling system that completely eliminates the build-up of waste heat
- The technology could significantly change the face of battle by extending engagement times, and increasing range and damage, researchers say

Published: 5:00pm, 11 Aug, 2023

Chinese military scientists have announced a major breakthrough in laser weapon technology, claiming they have developed a new cooling system that allows high-energy lasers to operate “infinitely” without any build-up of waste heat.

According to scientists at the National University of Defence Technology, in Changsha, Hunan province, the new cooling system completely eliminates the harmful heat that is generated during the operation of high-energy lasers. The issue has been a major technical challenge for laser weapon development.

With the new technology, weapons can now generate laser beams for as long as they want, without any interruption or degradation in performance.

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science ... technology



Photo: US Marine Corps

[weatheriscool]

Lockheed Scaling Army Combat Laser to Cruise Missile Destroying 500 Kilowatts
August 13, 2023 by Brian Wang

Lockheed Martin will scale its combat laser technology to a 500 kW-class laser. It will be the most powerful laser Lockheed Martin has produced, topping its 300 kW-class laser power level developed under a contract from the Department of Defense’s Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research & Engineering, OUSD (R&E). The 500 kW-class laser, developed under a new contract just awarded by OUSD (R&E), is the second phase of the High Energy Laser Scaling Initiative (HELSI).

The U.S. Army is working through a variety of challenges with directed-energy weapons for air defense, including how to affordably manufacture the high-tech capability and sustain it on the battlefield.

https://www.nextbigfuture.com/2023/08/l ... watts.html

[weatheriscool]

UK Getting 15 Kilowatt Combat Laser for Armored Vehicles
September 25, 2023 by Brian Wang

United Kingdom armed forces will receive its first 15 KW laser weapon in October 2023. A subsidiary of RTX’s Raytheon UK, the high-energy laser weapon system will be integrated into the UK’s Wolfhound armored vehicle. The UK Ministry of Defence’s (MoD) Land Demonstrator Program has developed a 15-kilowatt laser to prevent aerial threats from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).

https://www.nextbigfuture.com/2023/09/u ... icles.html

[weatheriscool]

German Navy completes successful sea trials of 100-kW laser weapon
By David Szondy
September 26, 2023

Laser weapons have begun to spread throughout NATO, as the German Navy has completed a year-long trial under realistic sea conditions of a 20-kW MBDA Deutschland/Rheinmetall Laser Weapon Demonstrator. It was installed aboard the 5,800-tonne (6,393-ton) frigate Sachsen.

Organized by the Federal Office of Bundeswehr Equipment, Information Technology and In-Service Support (BAAINBw), the trials were carried out by the High-Energy Laser Naval Demonstrator Working Group (ARGE) consisting of MBDA Deutschland and Rheinmetall.

In June 2022, a modular laser weapon system was installed on the deck of the Sachsen and integrated into the warship's command and control system. The weapon is made up of 12 2-kW laser modules based on coiled bundles of solid-state doped fiber, which generate high-quality laser beams. These go through a beam combiner that uses spectral coupling technology to form a single, much more powerful beam that can be scaled up to 100 kW.

https://newatlas.com/military/german-na ... er-weapon/

[Doozer]

Realistically, I think particle-energy weapons will become ubiquotous until at least the 2040's. I'm basing my guess off of how nuclear bombs were invented in the 1940's.

[raklian]

[weatheriscool]

Lockheed Will Make Two to Four 300 Kilowatt Class Lasers for the US Army
October 14, 2023 by Brian Wang

Lockheed Martin has a US Army contract to develop and deliver up to four 300 kW-class laser weapon systems to the Indirect Fire Protection Capability-High Energy Laser (IFPC-HEL) prototype program. The IFPC-HEL system complements other layered defense components to protect soldiers from stressing threats, unmanned aerial systems, rocket, artillery and mortars, along with rotary and fixed-wing aircraft.

Lockheed Martin will deliver two 300 kW-class IFPC-HEL prototypes with an option for two additional 300 kW-class units.

https://www.nextbigfuture.com/2023/10/l ... -army.html

[raklian]

Lockheed Will Make Two to Four 300 Kilowatt Class Lasers for the US Army
October 14, 2023 by Brian Wang

Lockheed Martin has a US Army contract to develop and deliver up to four 300 kW-class laser weapon systems to the Indirect Fire Protection Capability-High Energy Laser (IFPC-HEL) prototype program. The IFPC-HEL system complements other layered defense components to protect soldiers from stressing threats, unmanned aerial systems, rocket, artillery and mortars, along with rotary and fixed-wing aircraft.

Lockheed Martin will deliver two 300 kW-class IFPC-HEL prototypes with an option for two additional 300 kW-class units.

https://www.nextbigfuture.com/2023/10/l ... -army.html

Matter of time before we have a Megawatt class one. It will get really Star Warsy from that point on.

[weatheriscool]

Raytheon to build microwave weapon antennas for US Air Force and Navy
By David Szondy
December 28, 2023

https://newatlas.com/military/raytheon- ... orce-navy/
The US Navy and US Air Force have tapped Raytheon to design, build and test two high-power microwave antenna systems. These will be used in field-grade directed energy weapons to counter aerial drones and similar threats.

Recent conflicts have dramatically shown the increasing role that drones play in modern warfare. Even a small quadcopter of the sort you can buy in a hobby shop can be easily repurposed as a reconnaissance platform for artillery, or even as a way of delivering hand grenades with deadly precision. Add to this the specially made military drones of various sizes and levels of sophistication, and you end up with a formidable force that can be deployed in shocking numbers.

To counter this threat, scientists and engineers have come up with a number of approaches. One of the most promising is the use of directed energy weapons that use lasers and microwaves to disrupt or destroy hostile drones. The beauty of such systems is that, if they work, they can operate with unlimited ammunition that costs a dollar a shot and travel at the speed of light. The weapons can also be programmed to cover large areas of the sky while sparing friendly aircraft.

Under a three-year US$31.3 million contract from the Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division, Raytheon is tasked with developing prototype antenna systems by 2026 as part of the Directed Energy Front-line Electromagnetic Neutralization and Defeat (DEFEND) program.

[weatheriscool]