General Atomics Energy Products (GAEP) announced today that high voltage and high power switching power supplies it had built were used successfully at the High Energy Laser Systems Test Facility, (HELSTF), located at White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico. In cooperation with Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and Raytheon Corporation, GAEP designed and built eighty 20 kilojoule per second capacitor charging power supplies for the U.S. Army's HELSTF 100-kW diode-laser-pumped solid-state high energy laser development at White Sands. On August 31, a prototype laser system using those supplies reportedly achieved 12 kW output for 10 seconds.

The 10 kW laser system installed at HELSTF

The High Energy Laser Systems Test Facility (HELSTF) has been established to host exploration of future laser technologies. Appointed the US Army Space and Missile Defense Command's (SMDC) "Directed Energy Center for Test and Evaluation," HELSTF has a unique infrastructure with extensive capabilities for ground-based directed energy testing and evaluation. Located on White Sands Missile Range, in southern New Mexico, HELSTF has access to 3,200 square miles of controlled land and 7,000 square miles of controlled air space in which to conduct live fire, lethality, and vulnerability testing, as well as laser/material interactions.

A heat-capacity laser testbed with schematic showing the configuration of a
100-kW diode-pumped prototype developed for the U.S. Army's HELSTF.

GAEP is a leading supplier of high voltage, high power AC/DC switching power supplies, power conditioning and pulse power systems used in pulse power research facilities, lasers, accelerators, and a variety of other applications. GAEP is part of General Atomics Electronic Systems Inc., an affiliate company of General Atomics. The capacitor product line, formerly part of Maxwell Technologies, Inc., was purchased by General Atomics in March 2000. General Atomics Electronic Systems Inc. also designs and manufactures high voltage power supplies, radiation monitoring systems, and terminal automation products.

 
REFERENCES:

The HELSTF Heat-Capacity Laser Successfully Demonstrates 10-kW Output

A 10-kW Solid-State Heat-Capacity Laser System Installed at HELSTF, White Sands Missile Range

HELSTF Laser Project

The High Energy Laser Systems Test Facility (HELSTF)

Home | Energy Products | News | Electronic Systems | General Atomics | Quality | Capacitors | Capacitor Selection Guide
Power Supplies | Pulse Power Systems | Pulse Forming Networks | Fuses | Resistors | Product Questionnaires
Product Applications | Catalogs| Links | Technical Publications | Frequently Asked Questions | RMS Current Calculator
Contact Us | End User Statement | Informational Emails | International Reps | Site Map