Lockheed Martin is developing laser weapon systems to protect soldiers at sea, in the air and on land, according to the company’s website. Called a layered laser defense system, this innovation is combined with the integration of expert platforms to defeat a growing range of threats to military forces and infrastructure.
“Our current technology is poised to defend against small rockets, artillery and mortar rounds, small unmanned aerial vehicles, small attack craft and light ground vehicles from about a mile away,” the firm says on its website. “As the power levels of fiber lasers increase, our systems will be able to disable larger threats and do so at greater distances. When operated in conjunction with kinetic energy systems, these systems can serve as a force multiplier.”
Lockheed Martin has expertise in the supporting technologies required for the deployment of laser weapon systems on military aircraft, ground vehicles and ships.
“Our fiber lasers operate at an efficiency that generates less heat and exists in a smaller package that allows for easier incorporation into various defense platforms. Our ALADIN laser has worked in the field for two years without the need for readjustment, proving both the lethality and reliability of our solutions,” said Dr. Rob Afzal, Director of Laser Sensors and Systems.
The company achieves this level of success through two key approaches that it describes on its website as
– A simple, robust and scalable technique that combines multiple kilowatt lasers to achieve weapon-level power: ALADIN produces the highest power ever documented for such a laser, while maintaining excellent beam quality and electrical efficiency. Using a technique called spectral beam combining, multiple fiber laser modules form a single, powerful, high-quality beam that provides greater efficiency and lethality than multiple individual 10-kilowatt lasers. With less input power, the laser achieves a higher power at the target.
– A beam control technology that uses mirrors, lenses, and windows to shape and adjust the energy of a laser: For laser devices with power as small as 10 kilowatts or as large as 1 megawatt, beam control optics and the company’s software algorithms fine-tune the flow of energy in a focused beam. The energy travels through an optical system of mirrors, lenses, and windows that concentrate it and adjust it for distortions in the atmosphere it will pass through on its way to the target.
“Our beam control technology enables precision equivalent to shooting a beach ball from the top of the Empire State Building from the San Francisco Bay Bridge,” said Paul Shattuck, director of directed energy systems.
All this indicates that the research and development of Lockheed Martin they are increasing the performance of laser weapon systems while decreasing their size, weight and power consumption, making them ultra effective and practical. As an example of this incredible engineering, watch the video of the firm testing its layered laser defense system.