Raytheon Company

Hughes Aircraft Company

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Mitchell B Haeri

Michael Ushinsky

Michael Menefee

Partha S Dutta

David B Cohn

Gerard L Rafanelli

Richard Adam Cesari

Timothy G Brauer

Hector M Reyes, Jr

Kenneth K Colson

Michael J Nicol

Michael C Menefee

An anti-dazzle imaging camera is provided that includes a photorefractive crystal that is wavelength-agnostic. The photorefractive crystal is configured to receive an optical beam. When the optical beam includes no laser, the photorefractive crystal is configured to pass the optical beam unchanged to an imaging detector. When the optical beam includes a laser, the photorefractive crystal is configured to attenuate the laser to generate a modified optical beam and to pass the modified optical beam to the imaging detector.

Anti-dazzle imaging camera and method

Methods, systems, and photovoltaic devices converting broad spectrum incoherent optical power into electrical power by utilizing nonlinear multi-photon absorption and optionally enhanced by the application of magnetic fields, electric fields, or both during the power conversion process.

Photovoltaic device for generating electrical power using nonlinear multi-photon absorption of incoherent radiation

An optical device may include a sacrificial limiter filter including at least one layer of graphene disposed on a substrate. The at least one layer of graphene may be configured to absorb and scatter at least a portion of electromagnetic radiation incident on the at least one layer of graphene.

Broadband graphene-based optical limiter for the protection of backside illuminated CMOS detectors

A sacrificial limiter filter may include a substrate and a metal nano-coating and/or a polymer/carbon allotrope coating. The sacrificial limited filter may transmit optical radiation having desired frequencies and/or intensities while blocking optical radiation having undesired frequencies and/or intensities.

Sacrificial limiter filter

In one embodiment, detecting a target includes directing a laser beam towards an area and detecting the laser beam reflected from the area. Whether the received laser beam comprises an optically augmented reflection indicating retro-reflection from a target is determined. The target indicates presence of an explosive device. The target is detected if the received laser beam comprises the optically augmented reflection.

Detecting a target using an optical augmentation sensor

A laser protection device employing a gas plasma switch wherein applied laser radiation is focused inside a gas chamber, and a nuclear source is employed to pre-ionize the gas volume, whereupon focused laser radiation causes gas breakdown and plasma formation that attenuates the radiation. Specifically, the invention reduces the threshold of plasma switch initiation by incorporating a nuclear source within the gas chamber that constantly injects plasma forming seed particles into the vicinity of a focused laser beam. The plasma resulting from avalanche ionization of the seed particles reflects, absorbs and deflects the laser radiation. The nuclear source introduces charged particles, excimers and metastable atoms with low ionization potential into the gas chamber. Such charged particles are effective plasma initiators because they have low ionization thresholds. The present invention has been found well suited to protect against pulsed laser sources because of fast rise times and high attenuation levels. The present invention has negligible insertion loss, fast rise time on order of 5 nsec, passive operation requiring no input power using laser initiated plasma, it operates in stand-by and is ready for operation at all times, and provides broadband protection for all wavelengths greater than about 1 .mu.m.

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Irvine, CA, United States of America

Mitchell B Haeri