Course 1. Introduction to Wave Optics Beam Propagation
Classification: Unclassified, Public Release
Instructors:
- Andy Motes
- Steve Coy
Duration: Half-day course, starts at 0800
CEUs awarded: 0.35
Course Description: This course will provide an introduction to wave optics simulation, a high fidelity
simulation approach widely used in the design and development of laser weapons systems and optical imaging systems.
The course consists of four parts: 1) a general introduction to the basic theory and concepts underlying wave
optics simulation, 2) a discussion of the most commonly used wave optics propagation algorithm (the split-step Fourier
transform method), 3) a discussion of an alternative propagation algorithm, based on the Finite Difference Method,
and 4) the use of these algorithms to model optical propagation through random media, e.g. propagation through
atmospheric turbulence.
At the end of the class, students will understand the theoretical foundation for wave optics simulation
techniques, what kinds of systems and phenomena they can be used to model, and the basic methodology involved.
MATLAB and Mathcad demonstrations will be used to illustrate major points, and all the MATLAB/Mathcad scripts
used will be provided to the students.
Intended Audience: Newcomers to the field of computer simulation of laser systems and/or optical imaging
systems or managers with some background in science and engineering will benefit the most from this course.
Instructor Biographies: Dr. Motes is currently Director of the Directed Energy Group and Director of
Software Development at Schafer Corp. He taught Astronautical Engineering at the U.S. Air Force Academy and
Physics and Engineering at John Brown University. He is the author of three books and seven commercial software
programs of which two deal with laser beam propagation.
Steve Coy is the founder and president of Timelike Systems, a small company specializing in computer
modeling of complex systems. Before that he was for many years the Principal Scientist at MZA Associates,
and while at MZA he led the development of WaveTrain - a wave optics simulation tool widely used in laser weapons R&D.
Course 2. LEEDR and Atmospheric Effects
Classification: Limited Distribution C
Instructors:
- Steve Fiorino, AFIT
- Michelle Via, AFIT
Duration: Half-day course, starts at 0800
CEUs awarded: 0.35
Course Description: This course addresses how to characterize and quantify the major effects
of the atmosphere on directed energy weapons propagation. A first principles atmospheric propagation and
characterization code called the Laser Environmental Effects Definition and Reference (LEEDR) is described
and demonstrated. LEEDR enables the creation of climatologically- or numerical weather prediction (NWP)-derived
vertical profiles of temperature, pressure, water vapor content, optical turbulence, and atmospheric particulates
and hydrometeors as they relate to line-by-line or band-averaged layer extinction coefficient magnitude at any
wavelength from 350 nm to 8.6 m. Additionally, LEEDR provides overland cloud-free-line of sight (CFLOS) assessments
and access to and export of the Extreme and Percentile Environmental Reference Tables (ExPERT) database data.
The course outline is as follows:
- Goals of LEEDR & Atmospheric Effects Characterization
- LEEDR Atmospheric Data
- Probabilistic Climatology
- Atmospheric Boundary Layer
- Molecular Composition
- Realistic Correlation
- ExPERT Database
- Aerosol Data
- Ground/Surface Level
- Correlated-k Distribution
- Clouds, Rain
- Phase Function
- Optical Turbulence
- CFLOS Probability
- Example LEEDR Profile Plots, Products, and Menu Lists
- Installing LEEDR
- Running LEEDR
- Creating Atmospheric Profiles
- Figures
- CFLOS
- Accessing the ExPERT Database
- Example extinction plot
Students are encouraged to attend with a Windows OS PC, for which they have administrative rights, so that they may
install the LEEDR software and follow along with the demonstrations.
Intended Audience:US Government personnel and their direct contractors who have program requirements for
or are interested in methods and tools to assess realistic environments and environmental effects for modeling and
simulation, mission planning, and/or military systems operations. The course assumes the students have some technical
background in radiative transfer through the atmosphere--either via an undergraduate degree or career experience.
Instructor Biographies: Steven T. Fiorino received his BS degrees in geography and meteorology from Ohio
State (1987) and Florida State (1989) universities. He additionally holds an MS in atmospheric dynamics from Ohio
State (1993) and a PhD in physical meteorology from Florida State (2002). He is a retired Air Force Lieutenant Colonel
with 21 years of service and currently a research associate professor of atmospheric physics within the Engineering
Physics Department at AFIT and is the director of the Center for Directed Energy. His research interests include
microwave remote sensing, development of weather signal processing algorithms, and atmospheric effects on military
systems such as high-energy lasers and weapons of mass destruction.
Michelle F. Via has 5 years of experience supporting the intelligence and remote sensing communities by providing
atmospheric support for modeling and simulation tools such as the Laser Environmental Effects Definition and Reference
tool (LEEDR) and the Automated Collection Planning Tool (ACPT). She received her BS degree in Atmospheric
Science/Climatology from The Ohio State University in 2005. She also completed the Advanced Geospatial-Intelligence
Infrared and Synthetic Aperture Radar Technologies Certificate Program (ACP) at the Air Force Institute of Technology
(AFIT) in 2009. Ms. Via is currently completing her Master of Science in Geospatial Intelligence and Remote sensing
through Wright State University and AFIT. Ms. Via also has nearly 6 years of experience working in an atmospheric
science related field and 2 years of experience in the aviation industry. As the LEEDR point of contact, she supports
the Center for Directed Energy (CDE)-AFIT mission in directed energy, laser intelligence, and remote sensing through
atmospheric effects and modeling research. Additionally, Ms. Via has experience utilizing Satellite Tool Kit (STK),
has completed STK college courses, and has previous STK certification. Her research interests include SAR, Radar, and
Atmospheric Effects applications to earth and environmental remote sensing as they relate to the intelligence community.
Course 3. Introduction to Beam Control
Classification: Unclassified, Public Release
Course Level: Intermediate
Instructor: Paul Merritt, University of New Mexico
Duration: Full-day course, starts at 0800
CEUs awarded: 0.70
Course Description: :- This class will include an overview of existing beam control technologies
and will look at beam control systems envisioned for the future. The class starts with the development of
performance equations of a propagated laser beam and shows how disturbances, like jitter, degrade performance.
Supporting technologies that include random data processing techniques and control system design will be reviewed
prior to discussing beam control designs. Pointing and tracking beam control components and systems will be discussed.
The topics of gimbal systems and alignment systems will be described and math models developed. Controls modeling
for adaptive optics will be presented. The concepts for future fiber laser beam control systems will be introduced.
The students will obtain an introduction to the topics mentioned above and will be given a copy of the book "Beam
Control for Laser Systems" by Paul Merritt.
Topics to be covered include:
- System performance equations
- Use of random data to characterize a control system
- Classical design of a control loop
- Small angle jitter control
- Large angle pointing control, gimbals
- Tracking algorithms
- Adaptive optics controls modeling and introduction to fiber systems
- Analysis of a complete beam control system
Intended Audience: The class assumes the students have an engineering background and understand the use
differential equations. The class is aimed at persons who will be analyzing beam control system performance,
but also should be of use to managers who desire to understand the techniques available for analysis of beam
control systems. The class will cover the necessary introductory material, but will progress through this material
at a fast pace.
Instructor Biography: Paul Merritt received his PhD in Mechanical Engineering in 1974 and the same year
started working on beam control for laser systems at the Air Force Weapons Lab. He has continued in this field
working for the Air Force, Hughes, Boeing, and the University of NM over the last 30 years. His specialty is control
theory applied to beam control systems. He taught classes on random processes and control theory at the University of NM.
Course 4. Aero Optics
Classification: Unclassified, Public Release
Instructors:
- Eric Jumper
- Stanislav Gordeyev
- David Cavalieri
- Matthew Whiteley
Duration: Half-day course, starts at 1300
CEUs awarded: 0.35
Course Description: This course will present the student with physics underlying aero-optic aberrations, including: the
difference between aero-optics and atmospheric optics, shear and boundary layer aberrations and
more specifically aero-optically rich flow around turret-like bodies. The student will be exposed to the
characteristics of facilities and sensors used to measure aero-optics, especially: wind tunnels, flight-
test platforms and wavefront sensors. Methods to reduce measured data, specifically wavefront data,
will be covered. Effective passive and active flow control methods will be covered, as will adaptive
optics and some if its bounding issues. Aspects of various modeling and CFD simulations will be
presented. The student will learn how aero-optic aberrations are formed, how to model them, measure
them and post process data to understand them computationally.
Topics to be covered include:
- Physics of Aero-optics
- Facilities and Instrumentation
- Wavefront Data Reduction
- Flow Control for Aero-Optics
- Adaptive Optics
- Modeling and CFD simulations
Intended Audience: This course is suited for graduate students and technical end-users
with some experience or knowledge of basic principles of optics, advanced mathematics and popular
commercial codes such as Matlab.
Instructor Biography: Eric J. Jumper has been working in laser-related research since 1974; in the last 15 years research under his direction has led to Notre Dame now being recognized as the leading center for the study and mitigation of Aero-Optical phenomena. In
that time Notre Dame has been on the forefront of the development of new instrumentation, flow-control-coupled adaptive
optic techniques and turret and beam-control testing. Dr. Jumper has authored and co-authored numerous publications and is
a noted lecturer. He currently has three patents. Dr Jumper received his PhD in Gas Dynamics and Laser Physics from the Air
Force Institute of Technology in 1975; he is a Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.
Stanislav Gordeyev is a research associate professor at Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, University
of Notre Dame. He is an internationally recognized expert in investigating optical distortions caused by compressible turbulent
flows around airborne systems. His expertise includes performing complex experimental investigations of optical aberrations,
both in time-averaged and instantaneous sense, in boundary layers, shear layers and wakes, as well as around complex
geometries, like side-mounted turrets at subsonic and transonic speeds; experimental results and developed models are
currently widely used to design laser airborne systems, as well to validate computational codes to predict optical distortions
caused by turbulent flows. He is also actively involved in various studies of different mitigation techniques to improve the
overall optical performance of airborne systems.
Matthew R. Whiteley received his M.S. (1995) and PhD (1998) in Physics from the Air Force Institute of Technology. He
received a B.S. in Physics from Carnegie Mellon University in 1991. From 1998 to 2002, he was a Deputy Chief and Advanced
Concepts Team Lead at the Airborne Laser Technology Branch of the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory. From 2002 to
2005, he was a Group Leader and Senior Research Scientist at ATK Mission Research, and he is now a Vice President and
Senior Scientist at MZA Associates Corporation. Dr. Whiteley's research interests include optical turbulence, aero-optical flow,
adaptive optics, and wave-optics simulations.
David Cavalieri is a research specialist at the Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, University of Notre
Dame. He received his B.S.A.E. (1992) and M.S.M.A.E. (1995) in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering from the Illinois
Institute of Technology. He is an experienced experimentalist. His specialty involves design of experiments, manufacture
and fabrication techniques of wind tunnel models specifically tailored to aero-optic measurements in various measurement
environments. Mr. Cavalieri is a licensed Professional Engineer.
Course 5. Predictive Avoidance
Classification: Unclassified, Limited Distribution C (Restricted to employees of the U.S.
Government or its contractors)
Instructors:
- LeAnn Brasure, Schafer
- Heather Witts, JFCC SPACE/J95
Duration: Half-day course, starts at 1300
CEUs awarded: 0.35
Course Description: This course is intended to teach the "Why, Who, What, How and What's New" of Predictive
Avoidance (PA) - the process by which space assets are protected from accidental illumination by lasers. Airspace
Deconfliction (AD) - protecting air assets - will also be mentioned but not in any significant detail. PA and AD are
critical pieces of the testing process for DoD and NSA laser systems and a knowledgeable and proactive approach by the
testing organization can maximize test windows and minimize frustration.
The goal of this course is to familiarize the student with the reasons behind PA, the process for working with the Laser Clearing House (LCH) as well as tools and points of contact available to hopefully simplify and clarify the process. In addition the course will cover efforts in the community to standardize the process and make the safety requirements more in line with current probabilistic risk assessment methodology.
Topics to be covered include:
- Intro (who, what, where, when, how)
- Policy - Defining the environment, present and future
- Implementation - How do we keep assets safe
- Analysis - How do we identify risks, to include tools available
Intended Audience: Anyone who is currently involved or anticipates involvement in laser testing will benefit from this course. Test planners and managers as well as those technically involved with the testing are welcome.
Instructor Biographies: LeAnn Brasure works for Schafer Corporation supporting the HEL JTO as part of their technical team. She graduated from the University of Michigan with a BS in Physics. After completing four years of ROTC she was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Air Force. She obtained a Masters Degree in nuclear physics through the Air Force Institute of Technology and retired from the Air Force after 24 years of active duty service. During her active duty time she had assignments including WSMC (Vandenberg AFB), AFTAC (Patrick AFB) as well as a physics instructor at the Air Force Academy. She began to focus on solid state lasers during her assignment as an AFRL Laboratory Representative at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. Her last assignment was with AFRL at Kirtland AFB as the Solid State Laser Branch Chief. Her role as a part of the HEL JTO team is to monitor current and help define new technology development programs such as the JTO's Predictive Avoidance and Airspace Deconfliction effort.
Heather (Lehmann) Witts is the Deputy Chief of the DE Branch of the JFCC SPACE/J95 Unified Space Vault. In that role she is primarily responsible for carrying out the Laser Clearinghouse mission. She was accepted into the Nuclear Propulsion Officer Candidate (NuPOC) Program in 2001 and graduated from Luther College with a BA in Math and Physics in May 2003. She received her commission in December 2003, completed sea tours on USS IWO JIMA and USS DWIGHT D EISENHOWER, and passed the nuclear engineers exam. In August 2008, then LT Lehmann reported to JFCC SPACE/J95 at Vandenberg AFB as Deputy Chief of the Directed Energy Branch where she spent most of her time dedicated to carrying out the LCH mission. In late 2010 she transitioned out of the active force, into the Navy Reserves, and became an AF civilian - remaining in a similar position at JFCC SPACE. She obtained a Masters Degree in Engineering Management and was married in 2011. Ms Witts is presently the primary point of contact for the LCH mission.
Course 6. Synergistic DE/KE Analysis -- Transiting the M&S Pyramid
Classification: Unclassified, Limited Distribution D
Instructors:
- Ms. Linda Lamberson
- Dr. Craig Ewing
Duration: Half-day course, starts at 1300
CEUs awarded: 0.35
Course Description:This course will provide an overview of modeling, simulation and analysis tools used in Directed Energy (DE) and Kinetic Energy (KE) weapon effectiveness analysis and how they can be used together at every level of the modeling and simulation (M&S) pyramid. The course will include a description of DE and KE tools in four levels of M&S to include: 1) Engineering/Physics, 2) Engagement, 3) Mission and 4) Campaign. Each of these areas will be covered during the short course including a brief overview of individual DE and KE tools. The course will include description of an analysis process that allows the use of all levels of the pyramid in an iterative fashion to accomplish analysis objectives and will address challenges in the areas of modeling synergistic DE/KE effects, best mix optimization of DE/KE weapons at the mission level and characterization of accuracy of effectiveness results at the engagement level.
Intended Audience: This course is intended for those with a technical background who seek an understanding of DE and KE weapon effectiveness M&S tools and how they can be used together to assess separate and synergistic DE/KE effects. Technical managers or professionals with experience in DE or KE weapon systems or individuals who are beginning to work in the field would benefit from the class.
Instructor Biographies: Dr. Craig Ewing graduated from The Ohio State University with a BS in aerospace engineering. He received his MS and PhD from the University of Florida in Aerospace Engineering and Engineering Mechanics. He worked guidance and control R&D for space based kinetic weapons under the Strategic Defense Initiative for 12 years and has worked in weapons Modeling and Simulation for the past 15 years including engagement, mission, campaign, scene generation, HWIL, lethality, and computational mechanics. He currently leads modeling and simulation activities at the AFRL Munitions Directorate, Eglin AFB, Florida.
Ms. Linda Lamberson graduated from the University of West Florida with a BA in applied mathematics and received her MS in Management Science from Troy University. She is a senior operations research analyst in the Directed Energy Directorate of the Air Force Research Laboratory, Kirtland AFB, New Mexico. Prior to coming to the Directed Energy Directorate, Ms. Lamberson spent more than 20 years working in systems engineering and acquisition support for the Air Armament Center, Eglin AFB, Florida.
