China Makes Huge Breakthrough in High-Energy Lasers

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Chinese researchers have made a huge breakthrough in high-energy laser technology and developed an innovative cooling system that could make lasers operate for long periods of time and efficiently eliminate built-up heat waste. The researchers believe that this invention could enable high-energy laser weapons to have a longer range and increased punch.
The discovery was made by scientists at the National University of Defence Technology in Hunan province, and it solves a major technical challenge in laser weapon development, meaning high-energy lasers can now potentially generate uninterrupted and high-performing laser beams.
The team published a paper in the Acta Optica Sinica journal in which they say this is a huge breakthrough in improving the performance of high-energy laser systems and explained that “High-quality beams can be produced not only in the first second but also maintained indefinitely.”
According to Interesting Engineering, this new cooling system works by combining “advanced structures” and optimized gas flow to remove heat, while reducing turbulence and vibration within the laser, and even helps keep the focusing mirrors of the laser weapon clean.
Several breakthroughs have been made in the field by the US, which have all been canceled due to being “too big and heavy,” but a Chinese scientist explains that the real reason the projects have been canceled was that their destructive power did not meet expectations.
Another past issue with these weapons is their limited effective range of just a few kilometers, due to heat build-up during operation. To solve this, Yuan’s team developed a solution in which the system blows gas through the weapon to remove waste heat and improve gas cleanliness, and also aims to optimize gas flow and minimize size and weight.
The system has several key components, including an air source, a heat exchanger, a gas flow control system, and a gas injection/suction system. The air source provides clean, dry air to the system, which the heat exchanger cools to the desired temperature, theoretically enabling continuous operation.
This information was provided by Interesting Engineering.