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Anthony F. Hillen-1-
Directed Energy Weapons
Technology OverviewResearch into directed energy devices was conducted as early as World War II, when theNazis experimented with sonic weaponry. However, since the Hollywood sensation,
Star Wars
 was released in 1977; the public
’s
perception of 
directed energy weapons (often dubbed “ray
-
guns” or “death rays”) has been fundamentally ill
-informed. For the sake of parsimony, thispaper will focus solely on weapons that directly cause damage. While certain technologies couldbe consider
ed “directed energy devices” in the strictly technical sense of the term, this discussion
will exclude technologies that do not cause physical harm to their targets such as electroniccountermeasures, designed for communications interference. Two classes of directed energyweapons sit on the threshold of practical military significance: systems that employ laser-basedtechnology and those that utilize radio frequencies (commonly known as high-powermicrowaves, or HPMs).Laser-based systems are by far the most publicized, as well as the most promising of directed energy technologies. By exciting atoms, lasers generate powerful bursts of single-frequency, single-phase photons capable of being focused and directed using mirrors.Weaponized lasers are typically
gas dynamic
and use fuel or a turbine to propel the lasing mediathrough a circuit or sequential orifices. Due to the intense heat and pressure, the medium forms aplasma and lases, the beam can then be aimed in any direction.Despite several fruitless decades of development efforts, laser weapons have recentlybecome a technological reality. Nevertheless, the technology is still plagued by operationaldrawbacks and various developmental obstacles. Fielding a reliable laser weapon has provenexceedingly challenging, primarily due to the difficulty in maintaining the impeccability of the
 
Anthony F. Hillen-2-high-precision mirrors and windows in its resonating cavity, in addition to their inherentvulnerability to environmental obscurants like dust and water vapor. Secondly, attacking a target
 behind cover or shielding requires the use of gravity, but gravity’s effect on light is practically
non-existent, revealing another inherent operational drawback: lasers cannot be used for indirectfire.Lasers have typically suffered from three developmental problems that have significantlycontributed to the delay in fielding an effective system. An
effect known as “blooming”
causesthe laser to defocus and lose energy due to the atmospheric plasma breakdown that occurs whenenergy densities reach approximately 1 mega-joule per cm
2
. A second problem is that when thelaser strikes its intended surface area, evaporated material can effectively shade the target, thus
mitigating the weapon’s effect. The final
, but probably most developmentally prohibitive issue,is the high energy requirements associated with laser weapons. The technologies currently beingused for storing, conducting, and directing energy are incapable of powering a mobile weaponfor combat purposes. This lack of portability is primarily due to the bulky nature of theequipment needed to power and cool modern lasers, which emit as much heat as they do energy.Parallel to that of lasers, another promising research track involves the use of radio-frequencies, specifically microwaves. Operating in the low-frequency, long-wavelength sectionof the electromagnetic spectrum, high-power microwaves (HPMs) are capable of renderingelectronic systems ineffectual. HPMs might not possess the strategic flexibility offered by lasers,but they do share similar qualities (like light-speed transmission), and even possess certainoperational advantages (such as requiring very little in the way of logistical support and beingable to propagate in adverse weather). Like radio transmitters on a swivel, HPMs can be aimed todisable or destroy electronic systems and cause explosions by generating intense electromagnetic
 
Anthony F. Hillen-3-bursts of energy. It is worth pointing out, however, that in the strictly technically sense, the term
“microwave”
only applies to the highest radio wave frequencies, typically in the gigahertz range.Nevertheless, it has become commonplace to hear of all radio frequency-based directed energyweapons
 being referred to as “high
-
 power microwaves” in daily parlance.
 Development StatusDirected energy has made substantial advancements thanks to innovative new researchefforts by Boeing, TRW, Lockheed-Martin and the United States Air Force, under the auspicesof the Missile Defense Agency. The airborne laser (ABL) was designed to detect the launch of ballistic missiles and destroy them in flight. The ABL is currently undergoing a long-term test
 phase at Edwards AFB. The ABL’s
tracking system successfully demonstrated its accuracy whena modified Boeing 747-
400F, known as the “YAL
-1A Airborne Lase
r” te
st fired its targetilluminator several times off the California coast on March 15
th
2007.
The program’s next phase
will involve integrating the targeting system with a chemical oxygen iodine laser (COIL), a high-energy device designed to destroy missiles in flight. The COIL is intended to be fired through the
 plane’s nose turret and produce enough energy in a five second burst to power a typical
household for over an hour.Another promising research endeavor currently underway concerns the Tactical HighEnergy Laser (THEL). THEL is a promising new defense system that has been proven to becapable of ballistic missile and battlefield rocket interception. THEL has successfully interceptedover twenty BM-21/Fajr-3 rockets (also known as Katyushas), in addition to intercepting and
destroying artillery shells and multiple rockets launched in a single salvo. THEL’s operational
flexibility prompted an on-going effort to develop a mobile THEL (MTHEL), a vehicle-bornesystem capable of air transport.
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