SBIR-STTR Award

One of the major problems in laser-target interaction experiments is that the particulate material expelled in the plume scatters the laser light out of the beam before it is absorbed. To meet the army's needs to understand this process, kms proposes to develop a holographic plume analysis system that will capture images of the plume for detailed analysis. Based on its 16 years experience in laser/materials interactions in the inertial confinement fusion program, kms will define a highly versatile, holographic imaging system for plume particulates (hispp) that will provide (a) a deep field holographic plume images that can be analyzed for particle size and distribution, (b) temporal resolution with multiple holographic images at various stages of plume development, (c) automated analysis of the plume structure according to particulate size through the use of an efficient particulate analyzer subsystem, and (d) a holographic system that is versatile but easy to integrate into the user experiment. Kms will also devise an experimental plan (using the kms chroma laser system as a test bed) to demonstrate holographic imaging of particulates generated in laser-target interactions and to reconstruct the imaged holograms.

Many government facilities such as the Kwajaleing Missile Range (KMR) depend on tracking radars such as the AN/FPQ-19 to provide angle tracking and range data during missile tests. These types of radars ar sill the primary instruments used for test support, although the state of the art has advanced since these radarswere fielded. A severe limiation present in the AN?FPQ-19 and some of the other radars in this class is that the "mission capble" bandwidth is limited to a fraction of the radar functional bandwitdth. The AN/FPQ-19, for example cannot be automatically adjusted to accommodate a larger frequency shiftr. Manual adjustmenst are currently required to accommodate frequency shifts larger than 50 MHz. In addition, the calibration procedure is cumbersome. A Phase I progposal has been completed that defines the methodology for upgrading the radar to allow beacon tracking operation during a mission anywhere within the full functional bandwidth (5.4-5.9 GHz) of the radar. Also, a fully automatic calibration procedure has been devised. This Phase II proposal (submitted as a result of the Phase I contract) describes a plan to develop and install an operational upgrade to the AN/FPQ-a9 at KMR during the Phase II program.

Keywords:
TRACKING RADAR MONOPULSE BEACON INSTRUMENTATION RADAR PHASE MATCHING LOCAL OSCILLATOR AN/FPQ-19 KWAJ