Presentation
12 April 2021 Ultra-compact transmitter for space-based lidar
Author Affiliations +
Abstract
Fibertek, Inc designed, built, and tested an ultra-compact, lightweight flash lidar laser transmitter for NASA's entry, descent, and landing applications. The laser transmitter can be used in various commercial applications that benefit from SWaP improvements. The laser transmitter has a volume of .5 Liters, weighs .810 kilograms, and has a power draw less than 20W. The system produces an output pulse energy >10mJ, a pulse-width of about 5ns at a pulse repetition frequency of 5-30 Hz, and a beam quality of M2< 2. The use of additive manufacturing in the design of the space qualifiable laser is a key innovation that allowed us to reduce the size and weight of the laser transmitter. Fibertek, in partnership with researches at the Pennsylvania State University Center for Innovative Materials Processing, developed state-of-the-art additive methods to manufacture our topology optimized bench and covers. The laser transmitter combines our ultra-compact resonator and electronics into a single deliverable TRL-5 Package. We achieved a 5x reduction in volume from previous generation Fibertek flash lidar transmitters with a weight under a kilogram. Another innovation is the development of an athermal integrating-box pump head design. The pump head design allows the laser transmitter to operate over a wide range of temperatures with purely conductive cooling. We tested a temperature range of 15C to 50C without significant change in performance. The athermal design allows the laser transmitter to perform in a wide range of environments.
Conference Presentation
© (2021) COPYRIGHT Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE). Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Kegan Orlowski, Khoa Le, Corey Dickson, Nigel Martin, and Nicholas Sawruk "Ultra-compact transmitter for space-based lidar", Proc. SPIE 11744, Laser Radar Technology and Applications XXVI, 117440E (12 April 2021); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2587989
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KEYWORDS
Transmitters

LIDAR

Additive manufacturing

Head

Laser applications

Laser development

Temperature metrology

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