User:CrimsonMoon79/sandbox

=Development=

Research in nuclear pumped lasers started in the early 1970’s when researchers were unable to produce a laser with a wavelength shorter than 110 nm with the end goal of creating an x-ray laser. However, when laser wavelengths become that short the laser requires pump energy of large magnitude which must also be delivered in an increasingly short period of time. In 1975 it was estimated, by George Chapline and Lowell Wood from the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, that “pumping a 10-keV (0.12-nm) laser would require around a watt per atom” in a pulse that was “10-15 s x the square of the wavelength in angstroms.” As this problem was unsolvable with the materials at hand and a laser oscillator was not working, research moved to creating pumps that used excited plasma. Early attempts used more high-powered lasers to excite the plasma. Results using this method were unsatisfying, and fell short of the goal. Livermore scientists first suggested using a nuclear reaction as a power source in 1975. By 1980 Livermore considered both nuclear bombs and nuclear reactors as viable energy sources for an x-ray laser. On November 14, 1980 the first successful test of the bomb-powered x-ray laser was conducted. This idea was initially supported over that of the reactor driven laser because it delivered a more intense beam. By adopting such an angle, Livermore’s research was almost entirely devoted to missile defense using x-ray lasers. The idea was to mount a system of nuclear bombs in space. These bombs would each power approximately 50 lasers. Upon detonation, these lasers would fire, theoretically destroying several dozen incoming nuclear missiles in one detonation. Opponents of this plan found many faults in such an approach and questioned many aspects, such as the power, range, accuracy, politics, and costs of such deployments. In 1985 a test titled ‘Goldstone’ revealed the delivered power to be less than believed. Efforts to focus the laser also failed. Bomb driven x-ray laser research essentially came to an end when the principal researchers were accused of falsifying data, though the program continued until 1992.

Fusion lasers (reactor driven lasers) started testing after the bomb-driven lasers proved successful. While prohibitively expensive (estimated at 30,000 dollars per test), research was easier in that tests could be performed several times a day and the equipment could be reused. In 1984, a test achieved wavelengths of less than 21 nm the closest to an official x-ray laser yet. (There are many definitions for an x-ray laser, some of which require a wavelength of less than 10 nm). The Livermore method was to remove the outer electrons in heavy atoms to create a “neon-like” substance. When presented at an American Physical Society meeting, the success of the test was shared by an experiment from Princeton University which was better in size, cost, measured wavelength, and amplification than Livermore’s test. Research has continued in the field of nuclear pumped lasers and it remains on the cutting edge of the field.

=Uses=

Propulsion
Laser propulsion is an alternative method of propulsion ideal for launching objects into orbit, as this method requires less fuel, meaning less mass must be launched. A nuclear pumped laser is ideal for this operation. A launch using laser propulsion requires high intensity, short pulses, good quality, and a high power output. A nuclear pumped laser would theoretically be capable of meeting these requirements.

Manufacturing
The characteristics of the nuclear pumped laser make it ideal for applications in deep-cut welding, cutting thick materials, the heat treating of metals, vapor deposition of ceramics, and the production of sub-micron sized particles.

Weapon
Titled Project Excalibur, the program was a part of President Reagan’s Strategic Defense Initiative. Livermore Laboratories conceived of the initial idea and Edward Teller developed and presented the idea to the president. Permission was granted to pursue the project though it has been reported Reagan was reluctant to incorporate nuclear devices in the nation’s plan against nuclear devices. While initial tests were promising, the results never reached acceptable levels. Later, lead scientists were accused of falsifying the reports. Project Excalibur was cancelled several years later.

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