Breakthrough reported in Navy laser weapon technology

A Navy crew might only have seconds to react to an incoming missile before it rips a hole into a ship.

Existing anti-missile systems include rapid-fire guns designed to shoot down missiles at close range.

But a reliable laser weapon could do the same job with higher precision, speed-of-light engagement and without running out of ammunition.

It's an idea that's been in development at the U.S. Office of Naval Research since the 1980s. The goal is to create a megawatt, or 1 million-watt, laser weapon.

Last month, scientists at the Los Alamos National Lab demonstrated they are capable of producing the electrons needed to generate those megawatt-class laser beams. A preliminary design review began Thursday and continues today in Virginia, according to the Office of Naval Research.

"Until now, we didn't have the evidence to support our models," Dinh Nguyen, senior project leader for the Free Electron Laser program at the New Mexico lab, said in a news release.

The free-electron laser works by passing a beam of high-energy electrons, generated by an injector, through a series of strong magnetic fields. The result is an intense emission of laser light.

"The FEL is expected to provide future U.S. Naval forces with a near-instantaneous laser ship defense in any maritime environment throughout the world," Quentin Saulter, program manager for the Office of Naval Research said in the release.

The laser's speed will be a benefit to a ship that needs to react to moving or swarming targets. And it provides an effective alternative to using expensive missiles against low-value targets, a release from the Navy said.

In a November interview with Wired.com, Saulter also said the laser could be used as a sensor, as a tracker, or for communications, target designation and disruption.

The system is being designed as a game-changer.

The free-electron laser project began as a science and technology program at the Office of Naval Research in the 1980s and matured into a 14-kilowatt prototype that was developed at the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility in Newport News.

Work began last year on a 100-kilowatt prototype moving the program closer to the Navy's goal of a megawatt laser.

Its breakthrough in December puts researchers nine months ahead of schedule for its 2011 goals.

"This is a major leap forward for the program and for FEL technology throughout the Navy," Saulter said in the release.

There's still a long way to go before U.S. ships will be equipped with free-electron lasers. The earliest the Office of Naval Research is hoping to test a laser at sea is 2018.

Lauren King, (757) 446-2309, lauren.king@pilotonline.com