These short courses were offered in conjunction with the co-located Solid State and Diode Laser Technology Review and Ultrashort Pulse Laser Workshop, held in Newton, Massachusetts on 29 June through 2 July 2009. Continuing Education Unit (CEU) credits were awarded for completion of these DEPS short courses.
Course 1. Introduction to Laser Beam Quality Classification: Unclassified, Public Release Instructor: Sean Ross, AFRL/DE Duration: Half-day course, starts at 0800 CEUs awarded: 0.35 Course Description: This half day short course covers the general subject of high power laser beam quality. Topics covered include: definitions and applications of common measures of beam quality including Brightness, Power-in-the-bucket, M-squared, 'times diffraction limited', strehl ratio, beam parameter product etc. Special emphasis will be given to choosing an appropriate beam quality metric, tracing the metric to the application of the laser system and to various conceptual pitfalls which arise in this field. Material presented will come from general scientific literature as well as original work done by Dr. Ross and Dr. Pete Latham, both from the Air Force Research Laboratory Directed Energy Directorate. Intended Audience: This course should benefit anyone with an interest in laser beam quality, including program managers, scientists, engineers, and military personnel who are not experts in the field. Instructor Biography: Dr. Sean Ross has been with the Air Force Research Laboratory, Directed Energy Directorate, High Power Solid State Laser Branch since he received his PhD from the Center for Research and Education in Optics and Lasers (CREOL) in 1998. Research interests include nonlinear frequency conversion, high power solid state lasers, thermal management and laser beam quality. Beginning in 2000, frustration with commercial beam quality devices led to the work eventually presented in the Journal of Directed Energy, Vol. 2 No. 1 Summer 2006 "Appropriate Measures and Consistent Standard for High Energy Laser Beam Quality". This paper and its conference version (presented at the 2005 DEPS Symposium) have received awards from the Directed Energy Professional Society and the Directed Energy Directorate. Course 2. Transitioning DE Technology to the Warfighter Classification: Unclassified, Public Release Instructor: Bill Decker, Defense Acquisition University Duration: Half-day course, starts at 0800 CEUs awarded: 0.35 Course Description: The three DoD acquisition processes that must be followed to get a "program of record" established will be presented and discussed. The challenges of transitioning new (directed energy) technology will be addressed, along with lessons learned from other programs to help ensure success for DE programs. Part of the short course will be a hands-on portion, where specific actions will be developed by the class members on topics such as political strategy, requirements development, involvement of the Warfighters, etc. Topics include:
Small group discussions/action plan development. Topics include: Intended Audience: Program managers, industry and government leaders, scientists and engineers committed to having our Warfighters benefit from DE technology. Those who are DAWIA certified in Program Management or other specialty and have a current understanding of the revised Defense Acquisition System, the JCIDS process, and PPBE will find much of this material a repeat of prior DAU instruction. (If the training is more than six years old, the class will cover the changes and provide an update.) Instructor Biography: Mr. Decker is currently a Professor of Systems Engineering at the Huntsville Campus of the Defense Acquisition University and concurrently is the Director for the DAU Technology Transition Learning Center of Excellence. His experience includes over 30 years in electro-optics with ten years experience in high energy laser systems, including THEL, ABL, ATL and HELLADS, all while employed by Brashear (a division of L-3 Communications) in Pittsburgh, PA. Mr. Decker holds a MS in Physics from the Naval Postgraduate School and a BS in Engineering from Cornell University. Course 3. Atmospheric Effects Classification: Limited Participation Instructor: Steve Fiorino, AFIT Duration: Half-day course, starts at 0800 CEUs awarded: 0.35 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. In addition to overland cloud-free-line of sight (CFLOS) assessments, LEEDR enables the creation of exportable vertical profiles of temperature, pressure, water vapor, optical turbulence, and atmospheric particulates/hydrometeors as they relate to line-by-line extinction over the UV to RF portion of the spectrum. The course outline is as follows:
- Atmospheric Boundary layer - Molecular Composition - Aerosol Data - Clouds, Rain - Optical Turbulence - Realistic Correlation - Creating Atmospheric Profiles - Figures 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 Biography: Lt Col Fiorino (BS, MS, Ohio State University; MMOAS, Air Command and Staff College; BS, PhD, Florida State University) is currently an assistant professor of atmospheric physics at the Air Force Institute of Technology, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio. During his career, he has served as wing weather officer, 319th Bomb Wing, Grand Forks AFB, North Dakota; officer in charge, Weather Flight, 806th Bomb Wing (Provisional), during Operation Desert Storm; acquisition systems meteorologist, Wright Laboratory (now the Air Force Research Laboratory), Wright-Patterson AFB; Weather Flight commander, 1st Fighter Wing, Langley AFB, Virginia; and joint meteorological and oceanographic officer, joint task force, Southwest Asia. Lt Col Fiorino is a graduate of Squadron Officer School and Air Command and Staff College. Course 4. Fiber Lasers Classification: Unclassified, Public Release Instructors: Duration:Full-day course, starts at 0800 CEUs awarded: 0.70 Course Description: Fiber laser technology has the potential to make a significant impact in various defense applications, from LIDAR and remote sensing through to high energy laser weapons systems. This emerging laser technology offers many intrinsic advantages over traditional DPSSL, as highlighted by widespread publications in the research community demonstrating an impressive array of power scaling results, both CW and pulsed and at wavelengths from 1um to the eyesafe 1.5um and now 2um wavelengths. Obvious advantages associated with the technology are high wallplug efficiency leading to reduced electrical power requirements and easier system cooling, but also robustness, good beam quality and highly flexible system performance coupled with (remote) fiber delivery options make the technology unique in certain applications. The topics to be covered include: an explanation of the basic fiber parameters, double-clad fiber designs and covering such concepts such as large mode area fibers, modal/beam quality, PM fibers etc.; rare earth doping and spectroscopy of Yb-1um, Yb:Er-1550 and Tm-2um; component specifications and availability (couplers, isolators, seed laser diodes etc); limitations to scaling fiber devices, non-linear limitations, damage thresholds, etc.; design rules and concepts for pulsed fiber lasers and amplifier chains, recent results from the literature; and system specifications and the possible application areas, comparison and advantages over other laser technologies. This tutorial will cover the major aspects of designing and building a fiber laser, from the fiber itself through the various state of the art fiber components and discuss the system parameter space that best makes use of the intrinsic advantages of the technology. This course will enable you to:
Intended Audience: The tutorial is designed for researchers interested in investigating this application area but without the detailed knowledge of fibers and fiber based devices. Higher level managers and system designers/integrators will also be interested in the broad comparisons made between the fiber laser technology and current lasers and how this can impact future system designs. Instructor Biographies: Michael O’Connor received his M.S. in Geophysics, and B.S. in Physics from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. He has 12 years of experience in fiber optic and fiber laser development at Spectran Corp., Lucent, and most recently Nufern. He presently manages Applications Engineering for government applications at Nufern, with a focus on high power fiber lasers for directed energy. Michael is a US Army Special Forces veteran. William E. Torruellas received his PhD from the Optical Sciences Center, University of Arizona in 1991. He is currently a member of the Senior professional staff at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory. His work addresses the design of High-Energy-Lasers and their system development and field implementation for Directed-Energy-Weapon systems. He is also involved in active remote sensing evaluations. Previously he was Director of Fiber Optronics for Fibertek, focusing his work on double-cladding fiber amplifiers and transferring terrestrial WDM systems technology to the area of IR remote sensing and space based laser systems. Previous industry positions include Corvis and Raytheon; additionally, he was a senior research associate for CREOL and an assistant professor at Washington State University, where he helped establish an inter-departmental M.Sc in Opto-Electronics supported by the National Science Foundation. He has 51 refereed publications and 30 conference proceedings, one awarded patent, 55 invited talks, and 60 contributed oral presentations. He has been involved in the organization of conferences for SPIE and OSA, and has co-edited a book on nonlinear propagation. Course 5. Laser Materials Classification: Unclassified, Public Release Instructor: Vida Castillo, VKSC Consulting Duration: Half-day course, starts at 1300 CEUs awarded: 0.35 Course Description: Familiarity with a broad range of solid state laser materials is critical for a laser engineer, who is developing a new laser system. This class will provide a 4-hour overview of fiber materials, single crystal and ceramic laser gain materials, and nonlinear crystals. In addition, typical bonding methods, which can result in novel laser configurations, will be described. Attendees will gain an understanding of what is involved in the manufacture of these materials, as well as to gain familiarity with their properties and applications. Each attendee will receive a handout with laser material properties which can be used for future reference. Topics include:
Intended Audience: This class would benefit sales and design engineers and managers at all levels, who are employed by laser system or component manufacturers. An undergraduate degree or equivalent number of years experience in the field is assumed. Providing a broad overview of laser materials, this course will serve as both an introductory class and a refresher course for anyone involved with laser materials. Instructor Biography: After establishing the Fluoride Crystal Growth Laboratory at VLOC, Dr. Castillo progressed into the position of Government Contract Manager and worked at VLOC for 19 years. During this time, she has worked closely with the High Energy Laser community as well as with other contractors involved in DoD procurements. Her background in laser materials and crystal growth has allowed her to be an excellent resource for contractors and Government agencies, which are looking for appropriate laser materials for specific applications. She is currently consulting in laser materials and Government contracting. Dr. Castillo received her S.B. degree in Electrical Engineering from MIT, an M.S. degree in Materials Science and Engineering from Stanford University, and a Ph.D. in Applied Physics from the University of South Florida. Course 6. Tools for Transitioning Technology Classification: Unclassified, Public Release Instructor: Bill Decker, Defense Acquisition University Duration: Half-day course, starts at 1300 CEUs awarded: 0.35 Course Description: The alternative routes for transitioning technology to a program of record will be presented and discussed thoroughly. There are two ways to transition technology, in a routine way, or in an extraordinary manner. Both will be discussed along with the advantages and disadvantages of each approach. For the routine transition of technology, several tools have been developed that have proven successful in promoting the smooth transition of technology, while simultaneously providing the program executive officers and the science and technology organization leaders information that can assist in the prioritization and resource allocation for science and technology projects. Topics include:
Tools that can facilitate a smooth transition (and have worked elsewhere) Intended Audience: Program managers, industry and government leaders, scientists and engineers committed to having our Warfighters benefit from DE technology. This course assumes a current knowledge of the JCIDS process, PPBE and the Defense Acquisition System as described in DODI 5000.02 (as presented in Transitioning DE Technology to the Warfighter), interest, and enthusiasm. Please bring a laptop if you have one. Instructor Biography: Mr. Decker is currently a Professor of Systems Engineering at the Huntsville Campus of the Defense Acquisition University and concurrently is the Director for the DAU Technology Transition Learning Center of Excellence. His experience includes over 30 years in electro-optics with ten years experience in high energy laser systems, including THEL, ABL, ATL and HELLADS, all while employed by Brashear (a division of L-3 Communications) in Pittsburgh, PA. Mr. Decker holds a MS in Physics from the Naval Postgraduate School and a BS in Engineering from Cornell University. Course 7. Infrared Countermeasures Classification: Limited Participation Instructors: Duration:Half-day course, starts at 1300 CEUs awarded: 0.35 Course Description: The threat to USAF aircraft posed by infrared seeking missiles is significant. For example, it has been estimated that just shoulder-mounted missiles alone caused "90 percent of worldwide combat aircraft losses from 1984-2001," and such threats had been described by Gen. Richard Paul, a retired AFRL commander, as "the greatest vulnerability to Air Force operations." The purpose of the short course is to provide a cursory survey of the subject for laser researchers to provide a broader understanding of an important ‘application driver’ for their work. Topics to be covered:
Intended Audience: The purpose of the short course is to provide a cursory survey of the subject for laser researchers and their managers to provide a broader understanding of an important ‘application driver’ for their work. Attendance is limited to government employees and government contractors. Instructor Biographies: F. Kenneth Hopkins earned MS degrees in both electrical engineering and physics and a PhD degree in electrical engineering, all from the University of Cincinnati. His professional career comprises several years of university teaching, experience in industry including 2-1/2 years as a principal member of a start-up company concerned with machine vision, and 22 years of federal service in the Air Force Research Laboratory, Materials & Manufacturing Directorate, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, OH. Presently, he serves as Materials Portfolio Manager for Directed Energy applications. The materials team under his leadership was awarded the Federal Laboratory Consortium Award for Excellence in Technology Transfer in 1996, and during 2005, he received the Meritorious Civilian Service Award, the Air Force’s second highest civilian award. In addition, he was recognized with the Technical Leadership Award in 2008 by the Affiliate Societies Council of Dayton, Ohio. His scientific metrics include 90 journal archival articles and proceeding publications, one book chapter, 3 patents and several review articles. Dr. Hopkins is a senior member of IEEE as well as a member of the Association of Old Crows and the Directed Energy Professional Society.
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