KEYWORDS: Aerosols, Laser induced breakdown spectroscopy, Femtosecond phenomena, Cesium, LIDAR, Weapons of mass destruction, Signal detection, Classification systems, High power lasers, Spectroscopy
We propose a stand-off system that enables detection and classification of CBRNe (Chemical, Biological, Radioactive,
Nuclear aerosol and explosive solids). The system is an integrated lidar using a high-power (terawatt) femtosecond laser.
The detection and classification of various hazardous targets with stand-off distances from several hundred meters to a
few kilometers are achieved by means of laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) and two-photon fluorescence
(TPF) techniques. In this work, we report on the technical considerations on the system design of the present hybrid lidar
system consisting of a nanosecond laser and a femtosecond laser. Also, we describe the current progress in our
laboratory experiments that have demonstrated the stand-off detection and classification of various simulants. For the R
and N detection scheme, cesium chloride aerosols have successfully been detected by LIBS using a high-power
femtosecond laser. For the B detection scheme, TPF signals of organic aerosols such as riboflavin have clearly been
recorded. In addition, a compact femtosecond laser has been employed for the LIBS classification of organic plastics
employed as e-simulants.
Raman lidar is commonly used for measurement of water vapor profiles in the lower atmosphere. However, the
treatment of the Raman lidar signals from clouds is not well established. A simplified model taking multiple scattering
into account is proposed. The model results in a difference of two exponential functions, one which represents the
extinction of laser light inside the cloud, and another which represents the effect of multiple scattering. The model was
applied to measurement results using a Raman lidar system consisting of a laser wavelength of 280 nm and detection
channels for Raman scattering from water vapor and atmospheric nitrogen. When a cloud was present in the field of view
of the lidar, the water vapor Raman scattering signal increased from almost zero at the cloud base to a maximum at a
penetration distance of about 50 m, whereas the nitrogen Raman scattering signal decreased monotonously beyond the
cloud base. This behavior could be explained by the model, and the measured signals could be adequately reproduced by
setting the decay constant of one exponential function equal to the attenuation coefficient of the nitrogen Raman
scattering signal, and optimizing the decay constant of the other exponential function. Comparison of measurement
results and calculation results based on the model showed that the model is mainly applicable to optically thick clouds,
for which the attenuation coefficient is larger than 0.02 m-1.
Meteorological observation data such as temperature, humidity, wind speed and wind direction are important for
validating and improving numerical weather simulation models. Lidar is an effective method for acquiring such data
with high range resolution and short time intervals. In this study, we carried out a field observation with coherent
Doppler Lidar and Raman Lidar systems at the coastal area of Yokosuka, Japan, and compared the observed data with
the results of numerical weather simulations. We obtained the vertical profiles of horizontal wind speeds and wind
directions by Doppler Lidar with 65 m vertical range resolution, and the vertical profiles of the water vapor mixing ratio
by Raman Lidar with 20 m vertical range resolution at the lower atmospheric boundary layer (200-600 m height from
ground level). These data were acquired at time intervals of 10 minutes. We found an interesting phenomenon from
observed data indicating that, under weak wind conditions, water vapor in the atmosphere significantly increased just
after a definite change in wind direction from land breeze to sea breeze. A similar phenomenon was also predicted by the
numerical weather simulation with the same meteorological and terrestrial conditions. We analyzed the numerical results
and found that the change in water vapor mentioned above is mainly caused by the difference between the evaporation
from land and sea surfaces, which were located upwind of the land and sea breezes, respectively.
The generation of energetic protons using a polyimide tape of 7.5 μm thickness was carried out with laser pulses of 30 mJ energy and 80 fs duration. A deformable mirror system with a genetic algorithm (GA) was developed to optimize the laser-focusing spot. The fitness values used in the GA were measured from the focusing intensities under the low-gain condition of the power amplifier, or from x-ray in situ signals emitted from the target. Although we obtained a diffraction-limited size of 2 μm (full width at half maximum) using the former value, a precise optimization using the latter value was essential to accelerate protons whose flux was 106/MeV/shot to a maximum energy of 1.1±0.3 MeV with laser pulses of only 30 mJ energy since a laser spot that is too tight may be sensitive to wave-front distortion caused by residual thermal lenses of the power amplifier.
The dependency of the maximum ion energy emitted to rear side of a thin film on laser pulse duration was described by
isothermal plasma expansion model, and the maximum proton energy was increased with pulse duration. 1 MeV
protons were obtained with laser energy of 30 mJ by optimizing focusing using adaptive optics.
1 MeV proton from thin Cu tape target with 5 μm thickness was observed in the region of laser intensity (α~1.5) and ultra short pulse range of 60 fs. Carbon ion acceleration was also observed and the maximum energy was higher than 0.4 MeV. The energy and charged states of proton and carbon were measured by a Thomson mass spectrometer with CR39. The maximum proton energy seems to depend more on the laser energy density I λ2 τL [J μm2/cm2] than laser intensity I λ2 [W μm2/cm2] in the short pulse region around 100 fs.
A lidar system capable of simultaneous measurement of Raman and Mie-Rayleigh scattering was constructed, and used for measurement of 03, water vapor, and aerosols in the lower troposphere. 03 concentration measurement was performed by differential absorption of N2 and 02 Raman scattering signals with the lidar transmitter operating at 280.0 nm, and also by differential absorption of Mie-Rayleigh scattering and of N2 Raman scattering with the transmitter operating at 279.5 nm and 280.5 nm on alternate pWses. Water vapor profiles were obtained as the mix ing ratio relative to N2 using the N2 and H20 Raman scattering signals with the lidar transmitter operating at 280.0 nm. Simultaneous measurement of H20 Raman scattering and Mie scattering over a continuous period of about 13 hours showed that the lidar system can identify uncondensed water vapor and condensed water vapor by comparison of temporal and spatial variations of the water vapor mixing ratio and of the Mie backscattering coefficient.
We performed SO2, NO2, and 03 measurements in the lower troposphere using a multiwavelength differential absorption lidar (MDIAL) system. Measurement results are compared with results of airborne and ground-based in-situ measurements performed simultaneously with lidar measurement. Vertical concentration variation of SO2 with 0-7 ppb for 1000-1700 m altitude was measured by dual-DIAL, and those ofNO2 and 03 with 0-50 ppb for 700-2000 m altitude were measured by 2-wavelength DIAL quasi-simultaneously. Measurement results suggest that NO2 was trapped below the inversion layer, which induced the reduction of 03 concentration by the reaction with NOR. Comparison of results obtained by DIAL and by in-situ methods showed that the MDIAL system had sufficient accuracy for verification of long-range transport models of sulfur compounds and for observation of chemical reactions of oxidants and nitrogen oxides. We also performed simultaneous profiling of NO2 and 03 in the lower troposphere using a stable, high power transmitter for NO2 measurement. Concentration variations ofNO2 and 03 for 900-1350 m altitude were measured for a continuous time interval of 24 hours without maintenance.
Vertical concentration profiles of O3 and NO2 in the lower troposphere were measured simultaneously using a multi wavelength differential absorption lidar (DIAL) system based on a pair of Nd:YAG pumped dye lasers each capable of emitting two wavelength on alternate pulses. A mixture of Rhodamine 590 and Rhodamine 610 dyes and second harmonic generation was used to generate wavelengths 288.2 nm and 293. 5 nm for O3 measurement, and sum frequency mixing of LDS765 dye laser radiation with Nd:YAG fundamental was used to generate wavelengths 448.1 nm and 446.8 nm for NO2 measurement. O3 profiles of approximately 30-50 ppb and NO2 profiles of 0-20 ppb were obtained for vertical range 1500-2500 m. The measurement error was estimated to be < 6 ppb for 150 m range resolution, or < 0.9 ppm-m, for both O3 and NO2.
Vertical NO2 concentration profiles, which are important in studies of atmospheric chemistry and urban pollution, were measured by a differential absorption lidar (DIAL) based on a pair ofNd: YAG pumped dye lasers. In the experiment, 448.1 nm and 446.8 am were used for the "on "and "off' wavelengths, respectively. NO2 concentration profiles of 0-40 ppb were obtained for altitude 900 —2250 m with 150 m range resolution. Null error, which was estimated by the deviation ofthe null profile from zero, was <2ppb. The statistical error, systematic error from aerosols, and error due to uncertainty of absorbtion cross section were ?3.35 ppb, <3 ppb and <1 ppb, respectively. The total error was about 5 ppb. The estimation of aerosol backscatter and extinction error in NO2 measurement due to inhomogeneous aerosol distribution is treated in detail.
A multiwavelength differential absorption lidar (DIAL) system for measurement of trace atmospheric substances was developed. Vertical concentration profiles of SO2 in the lower troposphere were measured by three wavelength dual-DIAL (on wavelength=300.05 nm, off wavelengths=299.35 nm, 300.90 nm, with null profiles obtained at 300.05 nm) . The measurement wavelengths were chosen to minimize the effect of O3 . Measurement results showed an average SO2 concentration of 0.6 ppb for height 2000-4000 m, and the SO2 measurement error was estimated to be about 1 ppb for 150 m range resolution. Although the measured SO2 concentration was below the resolution of our system, the results show that the system is capable of measuring trace SO2 with approximately 0.15 ppm-m resolution. In addition, vertical O3 concentration profiles in the lower troposphere were measured using two identical DIAL pairs (on wavelength=285.0 nm, off wavelength=290.1 nm), from which two null profiles and two DIAL profiles were obtained simultaneously. The DIAL profiles, which showed an average O3 concentration of 42 ppb for height 1000-4000 m, agree with simultaneous O3 sonde measurements. The effect of backscatter gradients was shown to be small. The O3 measurement error was estimated to be 3.4 ppb for 150 m range resolution, or about 0.5 ppm-m.
We show that the coordinate-transformed mode which is the transformation from a Gaussian profile to a uniform circular one inside a cavity, is selected through iteration of round trips, using Fox-Li simulation in a bare cavity. When the phase constraint due to cavity mirrors is predominant, the intensity profiles converge to the desired profiles.
The profile of a laser beam was transformed into a rectangular uniform profile using a fabricated mirror. However, intensity ripples in the transformed beam were observed. These intensity ripples resulted from small ripples on the fabricated mirror surface. The peak-to-valley height and the peak-to-peak distance of the ripples on the mirror surface due to the fabrication error are 1.2 mm and about 10 nm, respectively. We evaluated the effect of these small ripples on the transformed intensity profile by calculating the laser beam propagation characteristics. The calculated laser beam profile was similar to the actual beam profile, and exhibited intensity ripples. Therefore, the intensity ripples of the reshaped beam resulted from the small ripples on the fabricated surface with the peak-to- valley height of 1/60 lambda. These ripples on the fabricated surface were probably caused by the feed speed error of the x-y stage of the fabrication machine.
A Fresnel error-reduction algorithm is compared with a stationary phase method as the method for designing the mirror surface profile of a laser beam forming system. We reshaped a Gaussian laser beam into a more uniform-intensity circular beam using a fabricated aspherical mirror.
We investigated the fluorescence and lasing characteristics of chromium- doped forsterite with high chromium concentration of 0.13-0.14 mol%. It was shown that the 0.13-0.14 mol% chromium sample has about threefold stronger intensity of the fluorescence extending from 1050 nm to 1400 nm, which causes laser oscillation, than the 0.04-0.06 mol% chromium sample which is usually used. The strong polarization of fluorescence extending from 1050 nm to 1400 nm was observed. Laser oscillation was achieved by using the 0.13-0.14 mol% chromium sample whose size was only 5 X 5 X 5 mm3.
A rectangular laser beam of uniform intensity is very suitable for laser photochemistry. In this paper, we propose a beam-forming system that consists of two deformable mirrors. One of the mirrors changes the beam intensity and the other compensates for phase distortion. We simulate the beam-forming property using a Fresnel equation solved by a Fourier transformation. We reshaped a Gaussian-like He-Ne laser beam into a beam with a more uniform intensity profile by a simple deformable mirror.
KEYWORDS: Power supplies, Magnetism, Switching, Plasma, Capacitors, Solid state physics, Energy transfer, Energy efficiency, Copper vapor lasers, Solid state lasers
We have developed a magnetic-pulse-compression-type 10-kW-class solid state pulse power supply for copper vapor lasers. By triggering the gates of two gate turn-off thyristors (GTOs) connected in parallel, a 5-μs rise time primary pulse was generated. A three-stage magnetic pulse compression circuit compressed the primary pulse to 0.13 μs. The 13.7-kW GTO switching energy was achieved with a 4-kHz pulse repetition rate when a dummy load was connected instead of copper vapor laser (CVL). Total energy transfer efficiency of the power supply was 60%. This pulse power supply has been applied to a CVL with a plasma tube of 70-mm inner diameter and 1.5-m discharge length, and has operated successfully.
KEYWORDS: Power supplies, Magnetism, Solid state physics, Switching, Solid state lasers, Plasma, Capacitors, Solid state electronics, Copper vapor lasers, Metal vapor lasers
The authors have developed a magnetic-pulse-compression type solid-state pulse power supply. The lifetime of a solid-state device is expected to be much longer than that of a thyratron. Two parallel connected gate-turn-off thyristors generated a long pulse, which was compressed to 0.27 microsecond(s) ec by a three-stage magnetic pulse compression circuit. The average power of 8.2 kW was able to be obtained when a dummy load was connected instead of copper vapor laser (CVL). This pulse power supply has been applied to a CVL with a plasma tube of 70 mm inner diameter and 1.5 m discharge length, and has been successfully operated.
Access to the requested content is limited to institutions that have purchased or subscribe to SPIE eBooks.
You are receiving this notice because your organization may not have SPIE eBooks access.*
*Shibboleth/Open Athens users─please
sign in
to access your institution's subscriptions.
To obtain this item, you may purchase the complete book in print or electronic format on
SPIE.org.
INSTITUTIONAL Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.
PERSONAL Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.