High-Conductivity Channels in Space, 1st ed. 2018 Springer Series on Atomic, Optical, and Plasma Physics Series, Vol. 103

This book discusses the physics of conductive channel development in space, air and vacuums and summarizes the attempts to create super-long conductive channels to study the upper atmosphere and to complete specific tasks related to energy transmission from the space to earth with high-voltage high repetition rate electrical sources. Conductive channels are produced by the laser jet engine vehicle-propulsion under the influence of powerful high repetition rate pulse-periodic laser radiation by CO2-laser, solid state Nd YAG,HF/DF laser systems generated with each pulse of the powerful laser conductive dust plasma. The book also presents the experimental and theoretical results of conductive canal modeling: the laser jet engine vehicle ?Impulsar?, which can reach the lower layers of the ionosphere in several hundred seconds.

Further, the book explores the development of lightning protection systems. The so-called long laser spark is generated to provide the conditions for connecting a thunderstorm cloud with a grounded metal rod, i.e. a classical lightning rod. Such conductivity channels can be used for energy transmission, overvoltage protection systems, transport of charged particle beams and plasma antennas. It provides the theoretical and experimental basis of high repetition rate P-P mode of operation for high power lasers (COIL, HF/DF, CO2,Nd YAG). It describes high efficiency and excellent beam quality disk lasers used for numerous applications, including surface treatment of dielectric materials in microelectronics, cutting, drilling, welding, polishing and cleaning of the surface and other technological operations. Lastly it investigates how megawatt mono-module disk lasers could be used to solve various problems: small satellites launched by lasers, formation of super-long conducting channels in space and atmosphere, cleaning of the near-earth space from the space debris and related applications.

Introduction................................................................................................................................. 5

Part I. High conductivity channels for a laser lightning-protection system ....................................  6

Chapter 1. Electric-discharge guiding by a continuous laser-induced spark ..........................  6

1.        Introduction ........................................................................................................................................ 6

2.        Experimental setup ............................................................................................................................ 7

4.        Conclusions ...................................................................................................................................... 16

References ....................................................................................................................................... 17

Chapter 2.Experimental simulation of a laser lightning-protection system........................ 18

1.        Introduction ...................................................................................................................................... 18

2.        Experimental setup .......................................................................................................................... 19

4.        Conclusions ...................................................................................................................................... 25

References ...................................................................................................................................... 25

Chapter 3. Lightning and acology of atmosphere.............................................................. 27

1.        Introduction ...................................................................................................................................... 27

3.        Lightning in the natural capacitor “Earth-Cloud” ............................................................................ 29

4.        Lightning in the natural capacitor “Cloud-Ionosphere” ................................................................... 34

5.        Orbital electrical socket ................................................................................................................... 37

6.        Conclusions ...................................................................................................................................... 38

References ....................................................................................................................................... 38

Part II. «Impulsar» as a background for high conductivity channels realization............................. 39

Chapter 4. Interaction of an optical pulsed discharge with a gas .......................................  39

1.        Introduction .....................................................................................................................................  39

2.        Conditions for stable shock waves generation ................................................................................ 40

3.        Experimental setup .......................................................................................................................... 41

4.        Combination of optical pulsed discharge-generated shock waves ................................................. 45

5.        Conclusions ...................................................................................................................................... 53

References ....................................................................................................................................... 54

Chapter 5. Mechanism of shock waves merging in a laser jet engine ................................  55

1.        Introduction ...................................................................................................................................... 55

2.        Efficient laser jet engine ................................................................................................................. 55

3.        Conclusions ...................................................................................................................................... 62

Chapter 6. Laser jet engine based on the resonance merging of shock waves ..................  64

2.        Parameters of a spark in the laser jet engine ................................................................................  66

3.        Mechanismof a resonance merging of shock waves in a laser jet engine ....................................  70

4.        Spherical optical pulsed discharde .................................................................................................  71

5.        Laser jet engine parameters in the monoreflectr scheme ............................................................  78

6.        Array reflector .................................................................................................................................  78

7.        Laser jet engine based on the resonance merging of shock waves ..............................................  81

8.        Conclusions .....................................................................................................................................  84

Chapter 7. Laser jet engine: the action of shock waves at low laser pulse repetition rate ..  86

1.        Introduction ...................................................................................................................................... 86

2.        Laser jet engine parameters ........................................................................................................... 86

3.        Conclusions ...................................................................................................................................... 89

Chapter 8. Simulation of high conductivity channels in space ............................................  91

2.        Lasers for producing sparks in the atmosphere .............................................................................. 91

3.        Use of pulse-periodic lasers ............................................................................................................ 94

4.        Formation of a current-conducting channels according to the “Impulsar” program ..................... 95

5.        Formation of an electrical breakdown in the channel formed by an exploding thin wire ............. 96

6.        formation of an electrical discharges in a plasma channel produced by a solid–state laser ...... 104

7.        Experimental results ...................................................................................................................... 109

8.        Conclusions .................................................................................................................................... 109

Chapter 9. High conductivity channel expansion rate measurements .............................. 113

1.        Introduction .................................................................................................................................... 113

2.        Formation of controlled electrical discharges in a channelproduced by the explosion of a wire 116

3.        Conclusions .................................................................................................................................... 121

References ..................................................................................................................................... 122

Chapter 10."Impulsar": New application for high power high repetition rate pulse-periodic lasers        124

1.        Introduction .................................................................................................................................... 124

3.        Results of measurements ............................................................................................................. 128

4.        The impact of thermal action ........................................................................................................ 132

5.        The dynamic resonance load ......................................................................................................... 135

6.        Matrix of reflectors ........................................................................................................................ 136

7.        Super-long conductive channel for energy transfer ...................................................................... 137

8.        Conclusions .................................................................................................................................... 139

References ..................................................................................................................................... 139

Part III. Lasers and laser components for high conductivity channels implementation................ 142

Chapter 11. Laser source for wireless power transmission in space .................................  142

1.        Introduction ................................................................................................................................  142

2.        High conductivity channel formation .........................................................................................  145

3.        High frequency pulse-periodic solid-state and gas-dynamic lasers .........................................  146

4.        Pulse-periodic HF/DF and COIL lasers .......................................................................................  150

5.        Bright future –high power/energy mono-module disk laser ....................................................  152

6.        Conclusions .................................................................................................................................  155

Chapter 12. High power high repetition rate lasers......................................................... 157

1.        Introduction ................................................................................................................................  157

2.        Comparison of CW and P-P regimes of operation .....................................................................  157

3.        Solid-state laser .........................................................................................................................  159

4.        High frequency intra-cavity loss modulation .............................................................................  160

5.        Carbon dioxide laser ...................................................................................................................  160

6.        High frequency P-P regime ........................................................................................................  161

7.        Conclusions .................................................................................................................................  163

            Chapter 13. High power lasers and new applications .........................................................  164

1.        Introduction ................................................................................................................................  164

2.        Lasers for laser jet engine development ...................................................................................  164

3.        Long conducting channel and new set of applications .............................................................  167

4.        Lightning control ........................................................................................................................  172

6.        Sprites and Jets investigation ....................................................................................................  178

7.        Conclusions ................................................................................................................................  180

References .................................................................................................................................  180

Chapter 14. High power disk lasers ................................................................................  182

2.        Disk and fiber lasers ...................................................................................................................  183

3.        Design and physical foundations of disk laser operation ..........................................................  184

4.        Laws of a disk laser scaling .......................................................................................................  185

5.        Regenerative amplification of pulses ........................................................................................  188

6.        Prospect of scaling the power/energy of a disk laser ...............................................................  189

7.        Conclusions .................................................................................................................................  191

Chapter 15. High power molecular lasers .......................................................................  192

1.        Introduction ................................................................................................................................  192

2.        Physical model of SSVD formation ............................................................................................  192

3.        Experiments ...............................................................................................................................  197

4.        High power/energy HF(DF) lasers .............................................................................................  204

5.        Discussion ...................................................................................................................................  216

6.        Conclusions .................................................................................................................................  224

References .................................................................................................................................  225

            Chapter 16. High power HF(DF) lasers  ..............................................................................  228

1.        Introduction ................................................................................................................................  228

2.        A new form of SSVD ..................................................................................................................  229

3.        Non-chain HF(DF) lasers pumped by SSVD ...............................................................................  241

4.        Wide aperture non-chain HF(DF) lasers ...................................................................................  245

5.        Conclusions ................................................................................................................................  246

Chapter 17. High power/energy optics ..........................................................................  250

1.        Introduction ................................................................................................................................  250

2.        Static POEs based on monolithic materials ..............................................................................  251

3.        Static POEs based on materials with a porous structure ..........................................................  267

4.        Adaptive POEs and optical systems based on them .................................................................  278

5.        Large POEs based on multilayer honeycomb structures ...........................................................  280

6.        Large POEs based on composite materials ...............................................................................  282

7.        High power/energy optics and its new applications .................................................................  284

8.        Conclusions .................................................................................................................................  286

Chapter 18. New materials for high power/energy lasers and new technologies .............  291

1.        Introduction ................................................................................................................................  291

2.        New approaches for high power/energy lasers development ..................................................  293

3.        Laser systems of propellant ignition .........................................................................................  295

4.        New SiC –mirror manufacturing technology capability ............................................................  303

5.        Conclusions .................................................................................................................................  306

References .................................................................................................................................  306

Conclusions .............................................................................................................................  308

Acknowledgements                                                                                                                                            310

Prof. Victor Victorovich Apollonov is a doctor of physics and mathematics, and a professor at RANS and AES. He received the State Prize of USSR (1982) and Russia (2002). He is a leading specialist in the area of basic principles of creation and development of high power/energy laser systems and high power/energy laser radiation interaction with matter, and is a pioneer of various new branches of science – physical and technical fundamentals of high power laser optics and adaptive optics, investigation of physical processes in a high volume self-controlled volume discharges, creation of high power/energy continuous wave, pulsed and high repetition rate pulse-periodic laser systems, high intensity laser radiation interaction with matter, high power/energy laser application for an effective protection of valuable objects and water surface cleaning from oil films, medical applications for UV lasers. His recent investigations have focused on laser diode array phase-locking, mechanisms of shock waves merging for a rockets launch by high repetition rate pulse-periodic laser light, super-long conductive channels based on dust plasma using ablation, high repetition rate optical pulsating discharge applications, space debris elimination by laser, and scalable mono-module disk laser and have been implemented both in Russia and abroad. He is the author of more than 1700 publications,

Apollonov V.V. is a high profile scientist and well known around the globe for his more than 45 years of international scientific activity. He has participated in and organized over 60 international conferences, symposiums and workshops. Over the last 5 years, his scientific group has fulfilled more than 60 R&D contracts with customers from Japan, UK, Germany, France, China, Korea, Singapore and USA.

He is the General Director of “Energomashtechnika” Ltd and is a member of the European and American Physical Society, SPIE, AIAA, American Society for QE and a member of the Specia

Features a wide variety of important applications of laser plasma physics

Presents a new method of energy transmission through the atmosphere

Written by a leading international expert in the field

Is the first book on this topic