Recent advances in ultra-high-power lasers, including the free-electron laser, and impressive airborne demonstrations of laser weapons systems, such as the airborne laser, have shown the enormous potential of laser technology to revolutionize 21st century warfare. Military Laser Technology for Defense, includes only unclassified or declassified information. The book focuses on military applications that involve propagation of light through the atmosphere and provides basic relevant background technology. It describes high-power lasers and masers, including the free-electron laser. Further, Military Laser Technology for Defense addresses how laser technology can effectively mitigate six of the most pressing military threats of the 21st century: attack by missiles, terrorists, chemical and biological weapons, as well as difficulty in imaging in bad weather and threats from directed beam weapons and future nuclear weapons. The author believes that laser technology will revolutionize warfare in the 21st century.

This new resource provides an insight into the physical principles of the device technology that underpins many laser-based military systems in one form or another. From this knowledge a deeper understanding of the fundamental requirements and the potential performance, as well as limitations of such systems may be assessed, given the appropriate operational parameters. Engineers and students are provided with practical advice on how to evaluate laser devices and systems, operate them safely, and train with them.

A number of experiments carried out in the last two decades, have led to the development of lasers as the next generation weapon system. A number of defense companies are carrying out research in this field and have achieved varying degrees of progress in constructing a high energy weapon. Laser technology has observed great scientific developments and engineering improvements that make it usable for various commercial, industrial, medical and scientific applications. There is variety of lasers available in the market today with different wavelengths, spectral bandwidth, power levels, operating efficiencies and temporal characteristics. This increasing maturity of lasers and compact optical systems has enhanced their capabilities for military operations. Military officials have indubitably always been interested in laser technology, even before the first laser was invented. Especially, since these devices can bring technological revolution in warfare, when used as range- finders, target designation, sensors, active illumination, data relay devices, directed energy weapons, weather modifier and much more.This book will be of valuable to students and practicing engineers providing with practical study of laser applications, used by the military, to carry out tactical operations on the ground or space-based platforms.

Department of Defense (DOD) development work on high-energy military lasers, which has been underway for decades, has reached the point where lasers capable of countering certain surface and air targets at ranges of about a mile could be made ready for installation on Navy surface ships over the next few years. More powerful shipboard lasers, which could become ready for installation in subsequent years, could provide Navy surface ships with an ability to counter a wider range of surface and air targets at ranges of up to about 10 miles. The Navy and DOD have conducted development work on three principal types of lasers for potential use on Navy surface ships-fiber solid state lasers (SSLs), slab SSLs, and free electron lasers (FELs). One fiber SSL prototype demonstrator developed by the Navy is the Laser Weapon System (LaWS). The Navy plans to install a LaWS system on the USS Ponce, a ship operating in the Persian Gulf as an interim Afloat Forward Staging Base (AFSB[I]), in the summer of 2014 to conduct continued evaluation of shipboard lasers in an operational setting. The Navy reportedly anticipates moving to a shipboard laser program of record in "the FY2018 time frame" and achieving an initial operational capability (IOC) with a shipboard laser in FY2020 or FY2021. Although the Navy is developing laser technologies and prototypes of potential shipboard lasers, and has a generalized vision for shipboard lasers, the Navy currently does not yet have a program of record for procuring a production version of a shipboard laser. The possibility of equipping Navy surface ships with lasers in coming years raises a number of potential issues for Congress, including the following:

The United States Army is looking for ways to defend against missile and mortar attacks. In this book, the National Research Council assesses a plan to create a 100 kW mobile, solid-state, laser weapon that could defend an area several kilometers in diameter. The NRC provides several recommendations: A 100 kW Laser is of limited value, so the program's goal should be a 400 kW weapon. The Army should proceed with the program in stages, focusing first on a rugged transportable platform for the weapon using existing 25 kW laser technology, then directing resources toward 100kW and 400 kW weapons. The Army should perform a detailed, quantitative study of the effectiveness of a high energy, solid-state laser weapon against future threats. The Army should continue to participate in U.S.-based and international research on high-energy lasers and related equipment. The committee found substantial benefits for the Army's solid-state laser program from other programs outside the Army. The Army should conduct risk-assessments that investigate the effects that a high energy laser may have on other airborne platforms in the vicinity of the target. The Army should study eye safety for both the operators of the laser and for civilians. The results of these studies should be integrated into the development of the weapon.