In 1997, LET Corporation, under contract with the Naval Sea Systems Command completed the conceptual design of a novel source that is capable of providing an ultra broadband radiation spectrum that extends from approximately 2 to 16 microns. These studies show that the source can produce high average power radiation in every IR atmospheric transmission window of interest and therefore, it has the potential to provide efficacious countermeasures for high value, high signature platforms, which presently have only very limited protection. The novel source is based on the interaction of a beat wave with non-linear media. The beat wave is formed from the mixing of two carbon dioxide laser beams with closely spaced wavelengths, such as 9.5 and 9.6 microns. The studies by LET Corporation, as well as the original studies of the IR source are based on the supposition that the beat wave is formed by two distinct carbon dioxide lasers that provide two closely spaced wavelengths. Since the weight, size and cost of the driver exceed, by far, the weight, size and cost of any other component of the IR source, replacing the two carbon dioxide lasers with a single laser would substantially reduce the weight, size and cost of the system. A scheme is proposed that has the potential to produced two closely spaced wavelengths from a single carbon dioxide laser line. The scheme is based on the modulation instability, which is a general characteristic of many dispersive, non-linear media.
Keywords: Countermeasures Ir Radiation Ultra-Broadband Spectrum Lasers Non-Linear Optics Beat Wave High Averag
