Thermal blooming critical power and adaptive optics correction for the ground-based laser

David C. Smith; Sallie S. Townsend

doi:10.1117/12.43550

1 May 1991 Thermal blooming critical power and adaptive optics correction for the ground-based laser

David C. Smith, Sallie S. Townsend

Proceedings Volume 1408, Propagation of High-Energy Laser Beams Through the Earth's Atmosphere II; (1991) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.43550
Event: Optics, Electro-Optics, and Laser Applications in Science and Engineering, 1991, Los Angeles, CA, United States

Abstract

The ground to space laser encounters the entire atmosphere and the laser power transmittable with good beam quality is ultimately limited by this propagation. For CW lasers, the ultimate limit is thermal blooming and this problem is addressed. The concept of a critical laser power is used which is the optimum laser power which leads to the highest far-field intensity. A perfect beacon is assumed and a perfect wave front sensor is also assumed to determine the maximum intensity achievable with adaptive optics phase conjugation of the thermal blooming. An analytic model is derived and its predicted results are compared with a wave optics computer code results. The agreement is quite good and shows the parametric dependence of the critical power on laser beam size, wavelength and atmospheric absorption and path length.

Citation Download Citation

David C. Smith and Sallie S. Townsend "Thermal blooming critical power and adaptive optics correction for the ground-based laser", Proc. SPIE 1408, Propagation of High-Energy Laser Beams Through the Earth's Atmosphere II, (1 May 1991); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.43550

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