SBIR Phase II: Affordable Optically Pumped Semiconductor Lasers for Polychromatic Guide Star Systems

这个小型企业创新研究（SBIR）二期项目研究和开发一种独特的激光技术，同时为激光导星和多色激光导星源提供一种紧凑、低成本的替代方案。导星激光器用于地面自适应光学望远镜，以提供高海拔、明亮、点光源，实现对大气像差的自适应近实时校正。自适应光学系统依靠激光和自然导星的组合来进行倾斜校正。由于缺乏足够亮度的天然导星，这种限制减少了可以探索的空间区域。一个优雅的解决方案是使用多色激光信标，包括两个间隔很近的输出波长（569和589nm），以产生在明显不同的波长（330和589nm）发射的导星。2008年，一个由关键自适应光学科学家和决策者组成的国家科学基金会委员会发现，天文学受到当前激光技术的限制，改进钠激光信标对于实现既定的天文学科学目标至关重要。在SBIR项目下进行的研究将生产光泵浦半导体激光器，这种激光器可以克服更传统的导星激光器替代品所带来的技术限制，同时使导星激光器更实惠。该项目的广泛影响/商业潜力将显著影响世界各地天文台通过提供高可靠、低成本的导星激光器来实现其科学目标的能力。目前，激光导星系统对于大多数天文台来说都太昂贵了。该领域的知名专家和关键决策者估计，目前的激光导星系统每瓦输出功率的成本为10万美元。使用激光技术生产可以大大降低成本，同时减少尺寸、重量和操作激光所需的功率。在不久的将来，天文台将开发和使用口径更大的望远镜。这些和现有的大口径望远镜需要多导星激光器，具有更高的多样性，更高的可靠性，同时具有更低的单位获取和维护成本。该产品的成功开发将释放用于获取昂贵的导星系统的资源，从而对天文学、科学和教育产生积极影响。因此，需要单个系统的小型天文台和需要多个激光导星的大型天文台将能够执行它们的资本获取计划，并更快地实现它们的科学目标。

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project conducts research and development of a unique laser technology that simultaneously provides a compact and low-cost alternative to laser guide star and polychromatic laser guide star sources. Guide star lasers are used in ground based adaptive-optics telescopes to provide high altitude, bright, point sources enabling adaptive near real-time correction for atmospheric aberrations. Adaptive optics systems rely on a combination of laser and natural guide-stars for tip-tilt correction. This limitation reduces the regions of space that can be explored due to the scarcity of natural guide-stars of adequate brightness. An elegant solution is to use polychromatic laser beacons comprising two closely spaced output wavelengths (569 and 589nm) to produce guide stars emitting, at distinctly disparate wavelengths (330 and 589nm). In 2008 a National Science Foundation committee of key adaptive optics scientists and decisions makers found astronomy is limited by the current state-of-the-art in lasers and that improving sodium laser beacons is critical to reaching stated astronomy science objectives. The research conducted under this SBIR project will produce optically pumped semiconductor lasers that can overcome technical limitations presented by more traditional guide star laser alternatives while simultaneously making guide star lasers more affordable.The broader impact/commercial potential of this project will significantly impact the ability of observatories around the world to reach their scientific objectives by making available highly-reliable, low-cost guide star lasers. Currently, laser guide star systems are too expensive for all but the most well endowed observatories. Renowned experts and key decision makers in the field estimate the current laser guide star system cost at $100,000 per Watt of output power. The use of the laser technology to be produced can dramatically reduce the cost while simultaneously reducing the size weight and power required to operate the laser. In the near future, astronomical observatories will develop and field telescopes with much larger apertures. These and existing large aperture telescopes require multiple guide star lasers with a higher level of diversity, greater reliability while having lower per unit acquisition and maintenance costs. Successful development of the proposed product will positively impact astronomy, science and education by freeing up resources otherwise allocated to acquisition of expensive guide star systems. As a result, smaller observatories requiring a single system and large observatories requiring multiple laser guide stars will be able to execute their capital acquisition plans and achieve their science goals more rapidly.