DIRECTED ENERGY PROFESSIONAL SOCIETY


 Directed Energy Systems Symposium
17-20 November 2025 Monterey, CA



 

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Short Courses



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Short Courses

These short courses will be offered on Monday 17 November 2025 in conjunction with the 2025 Directed Energy Systems Symposium. Continuous Learning Point (CLP) credits are awarded by DEPS for completion of the short courses.

Not all courses are open to all registrants. While all of the classes are unclassified, some have additional participation requirements, which are defined here and specified in the Classification section of each course description. Also see the Security section for this event.

  • Distribution C - Restricted to employees of the U.S. Federal Government or its contractors.
  • Distribution D - Restricted to employees of the U.S. Department of Defense or its contractors.

Registration for these short courses requires payment of a fee. See Course Registration & Fees at the end of this page. Registration for a short course does not require registration for the Symposium.

Select the checkbox next to a short course to learn more.

Morning Courses

1. Wargaming Directed Energy (CUI/C) 

Classification: CUI, Limited Distribution C

Instructor: Dr. Darl Lewis

Duration: Half-day course, runs 0800-1200

Credits awarded: 2 CLPs

Course Description:
This course introduces participants to types and applications of contemporary wargames, provides a history of wargaming, and proposes principles on capabilities and limitations of wargaming. It establishes a foundation in the roles, skills, and opportunities associated with wargaming using practical examples and mini exercises. The second part of the course presents processes used to organize, develop, and execute experimentation wargames for innovative and futuristic concepts, with a particular emphasis on development, adjudication, and analysis of directed energy concepts. It explores how organizations develop games from tactical through strategic levels to influence and inform next generation warfare, and it challenges participants to leverage their own expertise in identifying possibilities and pitfalls associated with bringing novel tools into the force mix.

Intended Audience: The course is designed for junior and senior technical engineers and managers who seek an understanding of experimentation wargaming and its application to support weapon system concept development and transition to the warfighter.

Instructor Biography: Dr. Darl Lewis is the Directed Energy Staff Specialist to United States Indo-Pacific Command, where he supports transition of directed energy capabilities from the lab into operational units. Dr. Lewis brings his understanding of physics, engineering, and policy perspectives into an operational mindset to maximize the military utility of the next-generation technologies in support of tomorrow's warfighters throughout the Joint and Coalition communities. Prior to INDOPACOM, Dr. Lewis was the Wargaming and Analysis Principal Investigator within the Air Force Research Laboratory's Directed Energy Directorate. In this role, Dr. Lewis led wargaming efforts alongside robust modeling, simulation, and analysis techniques to promote development game-changing directed energy technology.

2. Radiometry for Passive and Active Imaging (Open) 

Classification: Unclassified, Public Release

Instructor: Ron Driggers, University of Arizona College of Optical Sciences

Duration: Half-day course, runs 0800-1200

Credits awarded: 2 CLPs

Course Description: This course covers the generation (sources and radiometry), propagation (radiometry), and measurement (detectors and radiometry) of optical radiation. The theory, units, approximations, instrumentation, and applications will be presented in detail. The course emphasizes passive and active imaging applications.
Learning Outcomes:

  1. Understand how to measure optical radiation with physical (radiometric) and psychophysical (photometric) terms,
  2. Understand the basic radiometric quantities and the various units (Watts and photons per second),
  3. Know the types of sources, blackbodies, lasers, etc.,
  4. Know the various type of detectors,
  5. Be able to calculate noise and SNR arising from measurement, and
  6. Understand the mathematical derivations behind the concepts in the course.

Topics to be covered include:
  • Radiometric Units
  • Transmission, Reflection, Absorption, Emission
  • Radiometric Power and Photon Transfer
  • Passive Imaging Radiometry
  • Active Imaging Radiometry
  • Resolved Radiometry
  • Unresolved Radiometry
  • Detectors and Sources of Noise
  • Signal to Noise Ratio
  • Applications of Radiometry in Active Targeting

Intended Audience: An undergraduate background in physics, science, or engineering is assumed. The student should have a rudimentary knowledge of applied mathematics (integration, differentiation, etc). The course should be useful to those working in or wanting to enter the technical areas of passive and/or active imaging. This course will teach the student how to derive the flux (Watts or photons per second) striking a target and returning to a detector so that a signal to noise ratio (SNR) can be determined. The detectors and noise sources will be covered at a basic level. Managers with some mathematics background will also benefit from the course.

Instructor Biography: Ronald G. Driggers is a Professor at the University of Arizona's College of Optical Sciences and works in the areas of electro-optical and infrared imaging systems. Previously, he was appointed to the Senior Executive Service as the Superintendent of the Optical Sciences Division at the Naval Research Laboratory in 2008. There, he managed the efforts of more than 200 scientists and engineers and over $100M in research and development programs. Before 2008, he was the Director of the Modeling and Simulation Division at the U.S. Army's Night Vision and Electronic Sensors Directorate (NVESD) and a brief period as the Chief of the Electro-Optics and Photonics Division at the Army Research Laboratory. Dr. Driggers received a doctorate in electrical engineering from the University of Memphis in 1990, is the author of five books on Infrared and Electro-Optics Systems and has published over 160 research papers. He was Editor-in-Chief of the Encyclopedia of Optical Engineering (Taylor and Francis). He was selected as the 2002 Army Materiel Command's Engineer of the Year, 2001 CERDEC Technical Employee of the Year, and 2001 NVESD Technical Employee of the Year. He was a U.S. Naval Reserve Officer and was selected as the 2001 Naval Engineering Duty Officer of the Year (William Kastner Award). He is also a Fellow of the International Society for Optical Engineering, the Optical Society of America, and the Military Sensing Symposium. He was the Editor-in-Chief of SPIE's flagship journal, Optical Engineering from 2010-2015 and the Editor-in-Chief of the Optical Society of America's journal Applied Optics from 2015-2021. Dr. Driggers was awarded the Joseph Goodman book writing award (best optics related book) in 2024 for "Introduction to Infrared and Electro-Optical Systems."

3. Introduction to Counter DEW (CUI/D) 

Classification: CUI, Limited Distribution D

Instructor: Mark Neice, Directed Energy Consultants LLC

Duration: Half-day course, runs 0800-1200

Credits awarded: 2 CLPs

Course Description: This course provides an introduction to the field of counter-DEW; specifically, this course will discuss the basic scientific aspects of protecting systems from DEW and review technologies available to counter the effects of DEW on various types of systems. Future research directions in counter-DEW technology will also be discussed. This course is intended to be an introduction to the subject and is intended to provide the attendee with a basic understanding of the technologies, issues and solutions surrounding efforts to counter directed energy weapon systems. At the end of the course, you should have an understanding of (1) the basic operation & effects of directed energy weapons, (2) material hardening approaches, (3) atmospheric propagation effects & use in countering DEW, (4) operational techniques for counter-DEW, and (5) research directions for counter-DEW. Topics include:

  • Review of DEW
  • Sensor Hardening
  • Propagation Effects
  • Operational Techniques
  • Directions in C-DEW

Intended Audience: This course is intended for for engineers, scientists, system analysts, program managers, and military planners. Familiarity with basic optics and physics, such as that found in a two semester university level introductory physics course is beneficial.

Instructor Biography: Mark Neice is the President of Directed Energy Consultants, providing DE subject-matter expertise to the directed energy community. Mark is the former Executive Director of the Directed Energy Professional Society (DEPS). DEPS fosters research and development in Directed Energy, to include high-energy laser and high-power microwave technologies for national defense and civilian applications, through professional communication and education.

Mr. Neice is formerly the Director of the High Energy Laser Joint Technology Office, working for the Assistant Secretary of Defense, Research and Engineering. There he supervised the research and development of solid-state, free electron & gas laser devices, beam control technologies, lethality analysis, and the modeling & simulation tools that create military applications of laser energy for combat operations.

A command pilot, Col (ret) Neice has time in the 4950th Test Wing, and as initial cadre of the Joint Stars test team. He has over 7800 flying hours, mainly in the C-135 and B-707 variants, and is a member of the DoD Acquisition career force, certified in program management; test & evaluation; systems engineering; and science & technology management. Mark holds a Bachelor of Science in Enginerring Sciences from USAF Academy and a Masters of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Dayton.

4. Systems Engineering for DE Systems (CUI/C) 

Classification: CUI, Limited Distribution C

Instructor: David Kiel, U.S. Navy (retired)

Duration: Half-day course, runs 0800-1200

Credits awarded: 2 CLPs

Course Description: This introductory course is designed to provide an appreciation of Systems Engineering in the pursuit of the Directed Energy (DE) Weapons revolution. After many decades of Research & Development, emerging DE weapons systems must navigate the technology's "valley of death" through thoughtful application of Systems Engineering principles to successfully field new warfighter capabilities.

The course will introduce the principles of Systems Engineering, define DE's High Energy Lasers (HEL) and High-Power Microwave (HPM) Systems, then review DoD guidance and tools in the context of the warfighters' missions. Conceptual HEL/HPM applications will provide instantiation examples and enable interactive discussions. At the end of the course, attendees will be better able to craft their programs to leverage proven DoD SE processes and effectively integrate into existing and future DoD weapons systems/networks. The course will cover the Systems Engineering Process throughout the Lifecycle. Topics include:

  • The Big Picture/Overview
  • First, SE Principles
  • DE Weapon Systems Definitions: HEL & HPM
  • Military Requirements and User Interactions
  • DoD SE Guides to include Mission Engineering (ME), Digital Engineering, System-of-Systems (SoS), Modular Open Systems Architecture (MOSA), Software Engineering (SWE), and The Software Acquisition Pathway
  • Systems Architecture and its application to DE Systems
  • Tools to Enable Engineering Success: Modeling & Simulation (M&S) and How M&S supports DoD Processes
  • Testing as an Integral Part of SE: the Different Types of Test & Evaluation (T&E)
  • SE for High Energy Laser Weapon System Integration and T&E
  • SE for HPM Weapon Systems and T&E

Intended Audience: This course is open to the public and requires no specific background as it is general in nature, but rich in helping to understand the fundamental concepts of DE Weapon Systems and how to apply System Engineering processes.

Instructor Biography:

5. Directed Energy Weapons System Modular Open Systems Approach (OPEN) 

Classification: Unclassified, public release

Instructor: Grace Unangst, MITRE

Duration: Half-day course, runs 0800-1200

Credits awarded: 2 CLPs

Course Description: This course will cover the following topics:

  • The objectives of MOSA
    • What this means to the program manager and lead engineer
  • How do you implement MOSA on a DE program?
    • Define modules
    • Define and standardize interfaces
    • Develop test plan to ensure interoperability
  • Examples of service specific reference architectures
    • Army, Navy, Air Force
  • Recent policy changes and their impact

Intended Audience: US Government personnel and their contractors who are interested in the fundamental skills required to achieve efficient definition, analysis, synthesis, evaluation and realization of directed energy systems. The course is designed for decision makers, systems engineers, operations research analysts, program managers and domain experts who are interested in learning how implementation of Modular Open Systems Architecture policies and procedures affect systems engineering efforts for DE systems.

Instructor Biography: Grace Unangst is a Lead Systems Engineer at MITRE with 14 years of experience working on Navy Programs, and nine years of experience with Directed Energy. Grace is the Task Lead for MITRE's Directed Energy Weapon System Modular Open Systems Approach Reference Architecture, and Chair of the DEWS Subcommittee within the Sensor Open Systems Architecture Consortium. Grace also leads MITRE's support to the Office of Naval Research for the High Energy Laser Counter-ASCM Project. Grace previously worked on Solid State Laser-Technology Maturation, the Gun Launched Guided Projectile Block 0, Solid State Laser Simulation Experiments, and the Hypervelocity Projectile. In addition to Directed Energy, Grace has experience with Submarine Combat Systems, the NATO Evolved Seasparrow Missile System, Littoral Combat Ships, and Electronic Warfare. Grace received a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Virginia, and a Master of Science in Systems Engineering from Worcester Polytechnic Institute.

Full Day Courses

6. Tri-Service HEL Lethality Testing & Modeling (CUI/D/NOFORN) 

Classification: CUI, Limited Distribution D, U.S. Attendance Only

Instructors: Ronak Patel, NSWCDD and Michael Helle, NRL

Duration: Full-day course, runs 0800-1700

Credits awarded: 4 CLPs

Course Description: The Tri-Service Lethality short course consists of two distinct sessions as described below:

The Lethality Testing/Equipment Session will provide a discussion of all elements of HEL Lethality testing. The course will address data collection standards to be applied during the planning and execution of the test to assure meaningful and accurate data is collected. It will describe measurement techniques for measuring beam profile and other laser parameters during the execution of the test. Experimental test setup and processes will be described along with data acquisition requirements for targets, facility and test conditions as well as the instrumentation and equipment necessary to acquire those measurements. The testing session will conclude with a discussion of testing strategy for successful conduct of Dynamic Testing. This will include development of test matrices to describe all the key test parameters as well as techniques and methods to execute HEL Lethality full scale target testing.

The Modeling & Simulation Tools/Techniques Session will describe the models, codes and tools utilized to analyze and predict Laser System performance in a variety of ground-based, air-based and at-sea based scenarios. Model discussions will include high-fidelity physics based models as well as fast-running codes to provide vulnerability assessment for system level modeling codes. The high-fidelity modeling will describe the key parameters and the physics associated with laser / material interaction. Engineering-level modeling codes will be described that identifies the key target and laser parameters used to analyze a wide set of target scenarios and engagements. The full scope of end-to-end modeling will be described as used in DoD Analysis of Alternatives (AoA) decision processes. This session will be concluded with a description and demonstration of the HEL JTO published Laser Lethality Knowledge Base.

Intended Audience: Students attending this course should have an undergraduate degree in science or engineering. The course is tailored for the system program manager, system designer, and the lethality analyst who are interested in learning the full gamut of HEL lethality and target vulnerability analysis and testing. Experience in the field would be helpful but not necessary.

Instructor Biography: Mr. Ronak Patel is a Mechanical Engineer for the Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division (NSWCDD) Non-Kinetic Lethality Branch. He has 16 years of experience in high fidelity modeling and engineering modeling to support target vulnerability assessments and weapon system effectiveness. He leads the V&V efforts for all tests and continues to identify engineering model limitations. He also supports methodology improvements and facilitates the transition of methodology improvement into engineering model to improve model capability and accuracy. He holds a Bachelor in Mechatronics Engineering from S.P. University India and Master's in Mechanical Engineering from Virginia Commonwealth University.

7. Atmospheric Laser Propagation (CUI/C) 

Classification: CUI, Limited Distribution C

Instructor: Dr.Steven Fiorino

Duration: Full-day course, runs 0800-1700

Credits awarded: 4 CLPs

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 200 nm to 8.6 m. Applying those atmospheric effects to High Energy Lasers (HELs) is addresses by introducing and demonstrating a high-fidelity scaling-law HEL propagation coded called the High Energy Laser End-to-End Operational Simulation HELEEOS. The course outline is as follows:

  • Intro to atmospheric structure and constituents
    • Atmospheric boundary layer
    • Aerosol / fog / clouds
  • Atmospheric radiative / propagation effects
    • Extinction, refraction
    • Optical turbulence, scintillation
    • Laser Environmental Effects Definition and Reference (LEEDR)
  • HEL thermal blooming effects in the atmosphere
  • Optics, beam control: turbulence / thermal blooming compensation
  • Coherent beam combining
  • High Energy Laser End to End Operational Simulation (HELEEOS)

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 HEL modeling and simulation, HEL 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: 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 USAF Lt Col who is currently a Professor of Atmospheric Physics within the Engineering Physics Department at AFIT and is the Director of the AFIT 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. Dr. Fiorino is a DEPS Fellow and a member of SPIE, AMS, AIAA, and Optica.

Afternoon Courses

8. Introduction to LIDAR Remote Sensing (CUI/C) 

Classification: CUI, Limited Distribution C

Instructor: Chris Valenta, Georgia Tech Research Institute

Duration: Half-day course, runs 1300-1700

Credits awarded: 2 CLPs

Course Description: Although LIght Detection And Ranging (LIDAR) systems have been around since the invention of the laser, these instruments have seen remarkable development and deployment in the past decade. From their use as part of the sensor suite for autonomous vehicles for navigation, to their use as an authentication mechanism for smart phones and tablets, and to their use as remote sensing instruments to help forecast weather and provide data for climate change research, LIDAR data products provide outstanding situational awareness for their users. This course provides an introduction to the fundamentals and the theory of LIDAR; their major components; optical, electrical, and mechanical performance analysis; applications; and data products.

At the end of the course, a successful student should be able to:

  • Explain how a LIDAR system operates and identify major components;
  • Analyze the performance of a LIDAR system and identify engineering tradeoffs;
  • Describe the different types of LIDARs and their applications; and
  • Understand how LIDARs can be used for directed energy applications.

This course was previously taught as a semester long undergraduate/graduate level course and a longer version is offered as a professional short course through Georgia Tech Professional Education.

Intended Audience: This course is primarily intended for engineers and scientists who have taken college level physics 2 who are looking to better understand LIDAR remote sensing technology. Additionally, managers and non-technical persons will also be able to take away a fundamental understanding of the underlying key technologies.

Instructor Biography: Dr. Christopher R. Valenta is a Principal Research Engineer and associate division head at the Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI) Electro-Optical Systems Laboratory (EOSL) as well as an Adjunct Professor in the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Georgia Tech. He has built and researched a variety of lidar systems including airborne topography and bathymetric, automotive, and a number of atmospheric lidar systems including aerosol, 3D wind, temperature, water vapor, and ozone, among others. Dr. Valenta is the winner of the 2015 IEEE Microwave Magazine Best Paper Award, a Georgia Tech 40 Under 40 winner, a 2020 SPIE Rising Researcher, and a registered professional engineer in the state of Georgia.

9. HPM Modeling and Simulation Tools for Test & Evaluation (CUI/D) 

Classification: CUI, Limited Distribution D

Instructor: Walter Clover, Verus Research

Duration: Half-day course, runs 1300-1700

Credits awarded: 2 CLPs

Course Description:The Directed Energy Test & Evaluation Capability (DETEC) has developed two software tools to facilitate High Power Microwave (HPM) testing: HPM Test Hazard Prediction (THP) Tool and the HPM Target Surrogate Material (TSM) database. This short course presents an introduction to both. Drawing from propagation codes such as RF-PROTEC and the EMPIRE Suite, THP provides the T&E community with critical tools and information to mitigate safety and hazard risks to personnel and electronics during open-air tests of HPM systems. THP's essential functions include:

  1. Support safety and regulatory compliance by calculating and displaying hazard boundaries
  2. Prepare frequency clearance applications in Standard Frequency Action Format (SFAF)
  3. Aid in identifying potential harmful effects to non-test site electronics
  4. Display specific locations or boundaries with specified field levels

In this portion of the short course, students will see the code in action while instructors discuss: Modeling the Physical Scene, Specifying Scenario Input Parameters, Understanding & Selecting Propagation Models, Graphical Visualization and Output Products, Hazard Thresholds and Hazard Zones, Standard Frequency Action Format, Basic Weather and Atmosphere Models, transferring environmental data to THP, Loading and Using HPM Electric Field Sensor Data in THP. The TSM database is a browser based repository of information on hazardous materials as well as surrogates that can be substituted for these hazardous materials during HPM testing. The purpose of the tool is to provide the HPM T&E community with access to a database that contains information on hazardous materials, how to handle those materials during test, and commonly available materials that can be substituted for the hazardous materials. The TSM database's essential functions are to:

  1. Access to the electromagnetic properties of hazardous materials
  2. Suggestions for safe substitutes for those materials, to include electromagnetic properties
  3. Test Range unique restrictions on hazardous materials
  4. Hazardous material handling instructions, including cleanup procedures

In this portion of the short course, students will see TSM in action while instructors discuss: Finding the electromagnetic properties of a hazardous material; Finding a surrogate for the hazardous material; Making plots of material properties as a function of temperature and frequency; Entering new materials into the database; Extracting the original sources of the electromagnetic data.
DEMER: The Directed Energy Models and Effects Repository's (DEMER) was created to aid and encourage the distribution of and collaboration on directed energy (DE) modeling and simulation (M&S) tools and effects data throughout the wider DE community. An appropriate collaborative environment was established to provide for community wide discovery of DE tools and effects data which balances security with utility. The distribution format ensures owners and creators the freedom of development for, and confidence in the ownership of, their products. To reach this end, DEMER's overarching philosophy will be "Local Management, Enterprise Discovery". DEMER is a secure web-based card catalog of meta-data files describing the current M&S capabilities and effects testing efforts. Using a meta-data format favors autonomy for resource owners by only describing pertinent details of their products, without surrendering control to a centralized database. The repository also provides the capability for members and agencies to catalog and organize their M&S and effects testing products internally, only sharing with the wider community those products they deem appropriate. In this portion of the short course, students will be given a walk-through tutorial on how to register and use the DEMER database.
HPM PULSE: The High Power Microwave Procedures Leading to Standardized Effects (HPM PULSE) is a guidebook designed to standardize HPM effects testing and is meant to be used by both experienced and novice effects test personnel. It provides best practices and useful information on common aspects of HPM effects testing. The information included in HPM PULSE will aid personnel with test design and setup, as well as provide various quick reference charts, formulas, and other background information for use during the test execution. During this portion of the short course, students will receive an overview of the HPM PULSE guidebook to better understand how it can be used to aid in conducting HPM effects tests.

Intended Audience: The intended users of these HPM tools are test planners, spectrum managers, range safety personnel, test technicians or engineers, and environmental personnel involved in HPM testing.

Instructor Biography:

10. Introduction to the Golden Dome Initiative: Missile Defense and Directed Energy Technologies (CUI/C) 

Classification: CUI, Limited Distribution C

Instructor: Dr. Bonnie Johnson, Sandia National Laboratories

Duration: Half-day course, runs 1300-1700

Credits awarded: 2 CLPs

Course Description:This introductory course offers a comprehensive overview of the Golden Dome initiative – a proposed U.S. missile defense system aimed at protecting the homeland from various aerial threat, including ballistic and hypersonic missiles, with an estimated cost of $175 billion over three years. The seminar is an introduction and overview of the technical concepts and challenges associated with the new 2025 Executive Order’s missile defense policy. The course will review the history of missile defense initiatives and the relevant threat and technology advancements that have led to the need and potential for Golden Dome capabilities. The course explores the strategic, technical, and operational dimensions of using directed energy—such as high-energy lasers and microwave systems—as a transformative approach to intercepting and neutralizing modern airborne threats, including hypersonic missiles, drones, and ballistic projectiles. The seminar will review current missile threats, the new policy, integration challenges, and the role of space systems and directed energy systems for the Golden Dome.

Intended Audience: This seminar is appropriate for the technical and engineering community, government, small businesses, and managers interested in missile defense and directed energy capabilities.

Instructor Biography: Dr. Bonnie W. Johnson received her Ph.D. in systems engineering with research on engineered intelligent complex adaptive systems of systems from the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, CA, USA. She earned a Master of Science degree in systems engineering from Johns Hopkins in 2002 and a Bachelor of Science degree in physics from Virginia Tech in 1992. Dr. Johnson joined Sandia National Laboratories in 2025 as a senior systems engineer and is a consultant for Teknicare Inc. She researches Joint advanced technology combat and weapon systems. She leads research projects in directed energy weapons, artificial intelligence, space systems, and complexity. She spent 12 years in industry as a senior systems engineer developing missile defense technologies and 15 years as a systems engineering professor at the Naval Postgraduate School.

11. Beam Control For Laser Systems (CUI/C) 

Classification: Unclassified, Public Release

Instructor: Prof. Mark Spencer, University of Arizona

Duration: Half-day course, runs 1300-1700

Credits awarded: 2 CLPs

Course Description: Beam Control For Laser Systems closely follows the material presented in five chapters of the DEPS-published textbook entitled: "Beam Control for Laser Systems, 2nd Edition." The topics covered include:

  • Optics fundamentals (Chapter 2)
  • Systems engineering (Chapter 3)
  • Classical controls (Chapter 5)
  • Optical train components (Chapter 11)
  • Adaptive optics (Chapter 14)
Attendees of this course will receive a copy of "Beam Control for Laser Systems, 2nd Edition". The material presented in this textbook is tutorial in nature with exercises at the back of each chapter. A companion CD also provides solutions with MATLAB code for these exercises. An intended outcome of this course is that graduates will be able to complete these exercises as independent leaners. If you cannot attend the course but would like to purchase the book, visit the store to purchase it.

Intended Audience: This course is for those who seek a foundational overview. Scientists and engineers, as well as technical managers will benefit from the topics covered.

Instructor Biography: Mark Spencer is currently a Professor of Optical Sciences and the inaugural holder of the Robert M. Edmund Endowed Chair in Optical Sciences within the James C. Wyant College of Optical Sciences at the University of Arizona. At large, he is a scientist/engineer who has spent his career working in various scientific, technical, and administrative capacities. He began his research career at the Air Force Research Laboratory, Directed Energy Directorate (2014-2021) after receiving his PhD from the Air Force Institute of Technology as a SMART Scholar. Before taking his current role in academia, he served as a Directed Energy Staff Specialist at Headquarters US Indo-Pacific Command (2021-2023), as well as Director of the Joint Directed Energy Transition Office and Principal Director for Directed Energy within the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering (2023-2025). Mark is an internationally recognized expert in directed energy, specifically beam control and propagation for laser systems. He is a senior member of Optica and a fellow of SPIE. He is also a coauthor of the textbook used for this half-day course.

12. Laser Deconfliction (Open) 

Classification: Unclassified, public release

Instructors: Major Alexander Hoese and Capt Joshua Rottenbacher Laser Clearinghouse

Duration: Half-day course, runs 1300-1700

Credits awarded: 2 CLPs

Course Description: There is no charge for this course. Laser Deconfliction is special course offered in association with the Laser Clearinghouse and DEPS. This course is intended to teach the "Why, Who, What, How and What's New" of Laser Deconfliction (LD) - the process by which space assets are protected from accidental illumination by lasers with Predictive Avoidance (PA). PA is a critical piece of the testing process for DoD laser systems and a knowledgeable and proactive approach by the testing organization can maximize test windows and minimize frustration. The course is also intended to help the laser community work together in this area and provide a consistent source of information on current issues, capabilities developed by other groups, and what's in store for the future. The course has been updated to include decentralized and Special Use Space Range (SUSR) deconfliction methods and reflect the office's realignment into U.S. Space Forces - Space / Combined Joint Force Space Component (S4S-CJFSC). The goal of this course is to familiarize the student with the reasons behind PA, the process for working with the Laser Clearinghouse (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
  • 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:

Additional Information: No lunch is provided for this course. Registration is required. Please check the box in the "Special Short Course" section of the registration form.

Course Fees

 
  Half-day Courses Full-day Course
   Flat Fee $300 $550
 
   Note: Two half day classes can be selected for the price of a full-day class.

Registration

To register for a short course separate from the 2025 DE Systems Symposium, select one of the following options. If you plan to also register for the Symposium, you may use the Systems Symposium registration form instead. Complete your on-site registration in one of the following ways:

  • Complete this form to register on-line for a short course only. Note that on-line registration does not require on-line payment.

    Some organizations have installed web filters that prevent on-line registration from inside their facilities. If this appears to be true for you, please try again off-site or use the registration option below.

  • Print this registration form (in PDF format) and follow the instructions provided.

Persons requesting cancellation through 20 October will receive a full refund. Cancellations after 20 October are subject to a $100 cancellation fee. No refunds will be given for canceled short courses after 10 November.

 
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