Laser Radar: Progress and Opportunities in Active Electro-Optical Sensing

311 Pages·2016·16.13 MB·English

by  McManamon P.

Laser Radar: Progress and Opportunities in Active Electro-Optical Sensing

Laser Radar
Progress and Opportunities
in Active Electro-Optical Sensing

Committee on Review of Advancements in Active Electro-Optical Systems
to Avoid Technological Surprise Adverse to U.S. National Security

Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences

Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Laser Radar: Progress and Opportunities in Active Electro-Optical Sensing

The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of distinguished scholars engaged in
scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and technology and to their use for the general
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advise the federal government on scientific and technical matters. Dr. Ralph J. Cicerone is president of the National Academy of
Sciences.
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and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Ralph J. Cicerone and Dr. C. D. Mote, Jr., are chair and vice chair, respectively, of the
National Research Council.

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Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Laser Radar: Progress and Opportunities in Active Electro-Optical Sensing

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NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the
National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of
Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine.

This study was supported by Contract HHM402-10-D-0036-DO#10 between the Department of the Army
and the National Academy of Sciences. Any views or observations expressed in this publication are those
of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the organizations or agencies that provided
support for the project.

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Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Laser Radar: Progress and Opportunities in Active Electro-Optical Sensing

Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Laser Radar: Progress and Opportunities in Active Electro-Optical Sensing

COMMITTEE ON REVIEW OF ADVANCEMENTS IN ACTIVE ELECTRO-OPTICAL
SYSTEMS TO AVOID TECHNOLOGICAL SURPRISE ADVERSE TO U.S. NATIONAL
SECURITY

PAUL F. McMANAMON, University of Dayton, Chair
WALTER F. BUELL, The Aerospace Corporation, Vice Chair
MELISSA G. CHOI, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
JOHN W. DEVITT, Raytheon Vision Systems
ELSA GARMIRE, Dartmouth College
GARY W. KAMERMAN, FastMetrix, Inc.
KENNETH A. KRESS, KBK Consulting, Inc.
JEANETTE LURIER, Raytheon
PRADIP MITRA, DRS Technologies
PETER F. MOULTON, Q-Peak, Inc.
JONATHAN M. SMITH, University of Pennsylvania
ABBIE WATNIK, Naval Research Laboratory
ELI YABLONOVITCH, University of California, Berkeley

Staff

TERRY JAGGERS, Board Director
GREGORY EYRING, Study Director
DANIEL E.J. TALMAGE, JR., Program Officer
SARAH CAPOTE, Research Associate (until March 2013)
DIONNA ALI, Research Assistant
CHRIS JONES, Financial Associate
v
Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Laser Radar: Progress and Opportunities in Active Electro-Optical Sensing

Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Laser Radar: Progress and Opportunities in Active Electro-Optical Sensing

Preface

In today’s world, the range of technologies with the potential to threaten the security of U.S.
military forces is extremely broad. These include developments in explosive materials, sensors, control
systems, robotics, satellite systems, and computing power, to name just a few. Such technologies have not
only enhanced the capabilities of U.S. military forces, but also offer enhanced offensive capabilities to
potential adversaries—either directly through the development of more sophisticated weapons, or more
indirectly through opportunities for interrupting the function of defensive U.S. military systems. Passive
and active electro-optical (EO) sensing technologies are prime examples.
In 2010, the National Research Council (NRC) published the report Seeing Photons: Progress
and Limits of Visible and Infrared Sensor Arrays. That report focused on key passive sensor technologies
and concluded that detector technology was nearing background-limited infrared photodetection (BLIP)
for many tactical scenarios, and that therefore new detectors were unlikely to provide any “surprise”
technologies.
This report builds upon and expands the scope of the 2010 report by considering the potential of
active electro-optical (EO) technologies to create surprise; i.e., systems that use a source of visible or
infrared light (typically but not always a laser) to interrogate a target in combination with sensitive
detectors and processors to analyze the returned light. The addition of an interrogating light source to the
system adds rich new phenomenologies that enable new capabilities to be explored.
In late 2011, the intelligence community, with the U.S. Army as the lead, approached the NRC to
conduct a study to evaluate the potential of active EO systems to generate technological surprise. In
response, the NRC formed the ad hoc Committee on Review of Advancements in Active Electro-Optical
Systems to Avoid Technological Surprise Adverse to U.S. National Security, and the study contract was
signed in September of 2012. The statement of task given to the committee is as follows:

The NRC ad hoc committee will:
• Evaluate the fundamental, physical limits to active electro-optical (EO) sensor
technologies with potential military utility; elucidate tradeoffs among technologies including:
direct and heterodyne systems, scanning and flash ladar, Geiger mode, linear mode, and
polarization based ladar, synthetic aperture vs. real beam ladar; and parameters including
sensitivity, dynamic range, polarization sensitivity, etc. Compare these limits to the near term
state-of-the-art, identifying the scaling laws and technical and other impediments currently
restricting progress.
• Identify key technologies that may help overcome the impediments within a 5-10 year
timeframe, the implications for future military applications, and any significant indicators of
programs to develop such applications. Speculate on technologies and applications of relevance
that are high impact wildcards with feasible deployment within 10 years. Discuss available laser
illumination technologies, including wall-plug efficiency. Femtosecond pulse width laser sources
should be considered. Discuss available detector/receiver approaches and technologies. Discuss
laser beam steering approaches. Discuss processing approaches to convert ladar data into useable
information.
• Consider the pros and cons of implementing each existing or emerging technology, such
as noise, dynamic range, processing or bandwidth bottlenecks, hardening, power consumption,
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Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Laser Radar: Progress and Opportunities in Active Electro-Optical Sensing
viii PREFACE
weight, etc. Identify which state and non-state actors currently lead worldwide funding, research,
and development for the key technologies. Highlight the scale, scope, and particular strengths of
these research and development efforts, as well as predicted trends, timescales, and commercial
drivers.
 Evaluate the potential uses of active EO sensing technologies, to include 3D mapping and
multi-discriminate laser radar technologies. Laser vibration detection, atmospheric compensation,
multiple illumination wavelengths, polarization, and speckle considerations should be included as
methods of determining object identity and status.
A report will be authored by the committee addressing the foregoing tasks.

This has been a challenging effort because of the breadth of active EO sensing modalities and
contributing technologies. A further complication is that discussion of military or dual-use applications of
a technology is always limited by classification issues or other restrictions. The main body of this report
is unclassified. Where possible we tried to use unclassified, publicly available sources to discuss the areas
covered in the statement of task
This report was reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and
technical expertise in accordance with the procedures approved by the Report Review Committee of the
NRC. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist
the institution in making its published report as sound as possible and to ensure that the report meets
institutional standards for objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review
comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process.
We wish to thank the following individuals for their review of the report: Steven R. Brueck,
University of New Mexico, Joseph Buck, Fieldcraft Scientific, Ronald G. Driggers, Naval Research
Laboratory, James R. Fienup (NAE), University of Rochester, Robert Q. Fugate (NAE), New Mexico
Institute of Mining and Technology, William Happer (NAS), Princeton University, Sumanth Kaushik,
MIT Lincoln Laboratory, Dennis K. Killinger, University of South Florida, Paul D. Nielsen (NAE),
Software Engineering Institute, and Julie J.C.H. Ryan, George Washington University,
Although the reviewers listed above have provided many constructive comments and suggestions,
they were not asked to endorse the conclusions or recommendations, nor did they see the final draft of the
report before its release. The review of this report was overseen by Edwin P. Przybylowicz, Eastman
Kodak Company. Appointed by the NRC, he was responsible for making certain that an independent
examination of this report was carried out institutional procedures and that all review comments were
carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content of this report rests entirely with the authoring
committee and the institution.
The committee also thanks the NRC staff for its dedicated work, in particular Greg Eyring, the
study director, and Dionna Ali, who managed the administrative and logistical aspects with grace and
efficiency.

Paul McManamon, Chair
Walter Buell, Vice Chair
Committee on Review of Advancements in Active Electro-
Optical Systems to Avoid Technological Surprise Adverse to
U.S. National Security

Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Laser Radar: Progress and Opportunities in Active Electro-Optical Sensing

Contents

SUMMARY 1

1 INTRODUCTION 6
Applications, 6
Report Scope and Committee Approach, 16
Structure of This Report, 23
Concluding Thoughts, 23

2 ACTIVE ELECTRO-OPTICAL SENSING APPROACHES 25
Range Measurement Techniques, 25
Laser Range Finders, 26
One-Dimensional Range Profile Imaging Ladar, 26
Two-Dimensional Active/Gated Imaging, 29
Three-Dimensional Direct-Detection Active Imaging, 32
Active Polarimetry, 51
Underwater Sensing, 52
Vibration Sensing, 59
Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy, 62
Aerosol Sensing, 65
Differential Absorption Lidar, 74
Raman Sensing, 84
Laser-Induced Fluorescence, 88
Wind Sensing, 94
Commercial Laser/Ladar Products, 103

3 EMERGING ELECTRO-OPTICAL TECHNOLOGIES 107
Multiwavelength Ladar, 107
Temporal Heterodyne Detection: Strong Local Oscillator, 109
Temporal Heterodyne Detection: Weak Local Oscillator, 110
Synthetic-Aperture Ladar, 113
Digital Holography/Spatial Heterodyne, 121
Multiple Input, Multiple Output Active Electro-Optical Sensing, 126
Speckle Imaging, 129
Ladar Using Femtosecond Sources, 135
Advanced Quantum Approaches, 148
General Conclusions—Emerging Systems, 153

4 ACTIVE ELECTRO-OPTICAL COMPONENT TECHNOLOGIES 154
Laser Sources for Imaging, 154
Nonlinear-Optics-Based Sources, 156
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Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.