Abstract: A miniature heat exchanger. A small housing provides a heat exchanger surface, contains a spray shower head. A cooling fluid enters through a base plate and is sprayed through holes in the shower head on to the underside of the cooling surface. The heated coolant exists through exit holes in the nozzle and out a coolant outlet in the base plate. The device may also be used as a heater to provide temperature control to localized areas or large surfaces.

Abstract: An articulated arm comprising at least one compact Coude optics system simulating a shoulder joint. In this Coude optics system, two mirrors rotate on one gimbal axis and the other two mirror pivot on the other gimbal axis. The axis of the two gimbals intersect and light beams passing through the system effectively are turned at this point of intersection at a desired angle.

Abstract: A camera system in which microwave radiation from objects in a field-of-view is collected by an antenna having a beam direction which is a function of the beam frequency. The collected radiation is analyzed to produce an image of the objects in the field-of-view. In a simple embodiment of the invention a one dimensional image is produced. This one dimensional image can be converted to a two dimensional image by rotating the camera system or mounting the camera on a moving platform. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention the microwave radiation collected by the antenna is converted into electronic acoustic signals which sets up a diffraction pattern in a Bragg cell to diffract a laser beam which is focused on a television camera to produce one dimensional image of the field-of-view. The antenna can be scanned to produce a two dimensional image. In another preferred embodiment an array of antennas and a multi-channel Bragg cell is used to produce a two dimensional real time image.

Abstract: A compact coude optics system comprising a two axis gimbal system. Two mirrors rotate on one gimbal axis and the other two mirrors pivot on the other gimbal axis. The axes of the two gimbals intersect and light beams passing through the system effectively are turned at this point of intersection at a desired angle.

Abstract: A telescope with a spherical primary mirror and movable lightweight secondary assembly which includes an optical, imaging component and at least one location component both of which components are attached to a pivot arm. The location component can be a microwave, radio frequency or acoustic location component. The optical component of this secondary assembly reflects a portion of focused light radiation from the primary mirror back to the primary mirror and thence through a hole in the secondary mirror to a coude' optics device at the center of curvature of the primary mirror. The coude' optics device in turn reflects the focused light radiation to an imaging detector housed in the outer structure of the telescope. A preferred embodiment of the present invention combines all three of these location systems with the optical imaging component.

Abstract: A beam of radiation radiates in sequence an array of semi-conductor switches at an extremely rapid rate. Electron-hole pairs created by radiation permit the semiconductor switches to conduct electric current for a very brief period of time.

Abstract: A laser radar system capable of measuring windspeed to within 1 m/s at distances in the range of 10 km. The system comprises two fast atomic line filter-detectors, a first filter-detector and a second filter-detector, in which a metal vapor is excited by signal light and further excited to a Rydberg level by a pump laser beam. An electric field is applied to the filters which ionizes the atoms. The filter-detectors operate at one of the resonance absorption peaks of the metal vapor. The second filter-detector is also subject to a magnetic field which splits the absorption peak of the vapor into two absorption peaks leaving a valley in the position of the original absorption peak. A preferred lasing frequency range is a frequency range covering a portion of one of the slopes of the peak of the first filter and a portion of one of the opposite direction slopes of one of the peaks of the second filter.

Abstract: A high power fast switch for generating pulses of current to a load from a high voltage power source. A laser beam illuminates a cathode which simulates the emission of pulses of electrons which illuminate a diamond target. The pulses of electrons cause the diamond target to become conductive permitting high power pulses of electric current to pass through the diamond target from a high voltage source to a load. In a preferred embodiment a Klystron buncher compresses the electron pulses onto the diamond target.

Abstract: A fast atomic line filter capable of operating at speeds and quantum efficiencies greatly in excess of prior art atomic line filters. Signal light excites to an intermediate energy level the atoms of a contained vapor. A pump beam further excited these atoms to a higher Rydberg level. Simultaneously the atoms are subjected to an electric field that Stark splits the Rydberg level and ionizes very quickly the doubly excited atoms. The resulting ions or electrons are then detected with near unity quantum efficiency by a detector sensitive to either ions or electrons. By directly detecting the resulting ions or electrons the fast atomic line filter has an inherently higher quantum efficiency and much greater speed than prior art ALF's which must use photosensitive detectors to detect fluorescence.

Abstract: A low cost segmented mirror for making wavefront corrections. The segmented mirror is comprised of a large number of closely spaced mirror element assemblies. Each assembly is comprised of an essentially flat mirror surface backed by a substrate and a tubular shaped piezoelectric driver divided axially into at least three parts each part having its own independent voltage source. The independent voltages sources are variable over a voltage range including zero volts. Each driver is attached at one of its ends to a base support. During fabrication, the segmented mirrors are held in place on an essentially flat vacuum chuck while the other ends of the drivers are attached to the mirror substrates with an epoxy. The result is an essentially flat segmented mirror surface when the independent voltage sources are at zero volts. Wavefront corrections are produced by varying the voltage to each individual part of each piezoelectric driver so as to adjust each of the segmented mirror surfaces in tilt, tip, and piston.