Sensing
nLIGHT’s laser portfolio for active sensing is a critical national security asset for gathering situational awareness for the warfighter. Unlike passive sensors, such as cameras, that rely on ambient light, active sensors use lasers to capture precise measurements within high resolution imagery. When a laser pulse is emitted, it interacts with the target, and the reflected or scattered light is detected. The time it takes for the light to return, along with shifts in intensity and frequency, provides valuable information about the target's distance, velocity, shape, and surface characteristics.
nLIGHT lasers are built at U.S. manufacturing sites, incorporating innovative and proprietary technologies across the entire technology stack from semiconductor laser diodes to high-power fiber amplifiers, and beam-combined lasers. Applications for our active sensing lasers include threat detection, designation and identification, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) missions and optical transmission for communications in space.
LiDAR
nLIGHT’s military hardened pulsed lasers are used as the transmitting light source to provide crucial situational awareness to the warfighter in environments from terrestrial to space. Using lasers as an active sensing source provides the warfighter stealth long range threat identification and for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) missions.
Countermeasures
Infrared countermeasure (IRCM) technology is used to defend against threats detected via infrared (IR) sensors, such as heat-seeking missiles or other infrared-guided weapons. These countermeasures work by disrupting or deceiving the targeting system of an incoming missile, typically by emitting infrared radiation. This emission creates false targets or distractions, such as heat signatures that mimic the target's heat signature (like an aircraft or vehicle). IRCMs are critical for enhancing the survivability of military vehicles, aircraft, and ships by mitigating the risk of infrared-guided attacks.
Space
nLIGHT has a long history of supplying customers in the aerospace and defense market with innovative high-power laser technology for space applications. Our semiconductor and pulsed lasers are used in numerous programs as optical transmitters for free space satellite communications. Additionally, our high-power semiconductor lasers are part of the transmitting laser technology that form the heart of NASA’s Ice, Cloud and Land Elevation Satellite 2 (ICESat-2), launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base on September 15, 2018. ICESat-2 uses a laser altimeter to measure, track and report on changes to the earth’s surface.