OSC Colloquium: Paul McManamon, "LiDAR, Revolutionary Optical Beam Steering, and Free Space....."

Dec. 9, 2022
Paul McManamon

Title: LiDAR, Revolutionary Optical Beam Steering, and Free Space Optical Communications 

Abstract: 

Dr. McManamon will talk mostly about LiDAR, but also include optical beam steering and free space laser communications. The LiDAR talk will include significant discussion of auto LiDAR, the form of LiDAR that is getting the most funding at this time. Revolutionary optical beam steering techniques will also be discussed, that will change how many optical systems are made. Free space optical communication, using some of these beam steering techniques will also be discussed. 

Bio: 

Dr. Paul F. McManamon is president of Exciting Technology LLC, chief science officer at Nuview, and Technical Director of the LiDAR and Optical Communications Institute, LOCI, at the University of Dayton. He retired from being Chief Scientist for the Air Force Research Lab, AFRL, Sensors Directorate in 2008. He chaired the US National Academy of Sciences Study “Laser Radar: Progress and Opportunities in Active Electro-Optical Sensing” (2014). He was the main LiDAR expert witness for Uber in the lawsuit vs Google/Waymo. He was co-chair of the US NAS study “Optics and Photonics, Essential Technologies for Our Nation” (2012) study, which recommended a National Photonics Initiative, NPI. Dr. McManamon was also vice chair of the 2010 NAS study called “Seeing Photons: Progress and Limits of Visible and Infrared Sensor Arrays”. He has written two books on LiDAR. Dr McManamon is a Fellow of SPIE, IEEE Optica, AFRL, DEPs, MSS, and AIAA. Dr McManamon received the WRG Baker award from the IEEE in 1998 for the best paper in ANY refereed IEEE journal or publication (more than 20,000 papers). He was president of SPIE in 2006. He was on the SPIE board of directors for 7 years and on the SPIE Executive Committee from 2003 through 2007. Prior to being chief scientist for AFRL Sensors directorate he was senior scientist for EO/IR Sensors and acting chief scientist for the Avionics directorate for more than 2.5 years. In 2006 he received the Meritorious Presidential Rank Award. He was the co-recipient of the SPIE Presidents’ Award in 2013.

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05
Donna Strickland Colloquium
OSC Colloquium: Donna Strickland, "High Intensity Fiber lasers for Nonlinear Optics"
3:30 – 5 p.m., Dec. 5, 2024

Ti:sapphire lasers offer the largest bandwidths and therefore the shortest pulses.   The highest laser intensities have been achieved using Chirped Pulse Amplification (CPA) of large diameter solid state lasers.  CPA was needed to avoid damage from the nonlinear process of self-focusing.  The disadvantage of solid-state lasers is the limited average power.  On the other hand, diode pumped fiber laser systems offer significantly higher average power than solid state lasers. Self-focusing is eliminated in single mode fibers by guiding and so nonlinear optics can be beneficial rather than detrimental and used to broaden the gain bandwidth.  Single fiber laser amplifiers will not reach the highest intensities offered by solid state lasers, but in this talk, I will discuss developing fiber laser amplifiers for nonlinear optical interactions such as mid-infrared generation and laser acceleration of electrons that require high intensity and benefit from high average power.

Past Speakers

Hendra Nurdin
3:30 – 5 p.m., Nov. 21, 2024

OSC Colloquium: Hendra Nurdin, "Physical Learning Machines: Classical and Quantum Reservoir Computers and Beyond"

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caleb baker colloquium
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As the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope approaches its planned launch date in 2027, the engineers of one of its two instruments have recent cause to celebrate. Roman’s Coronagraph Instrument (CGI), a technology demonstration chasing direct images of Jupiter-like exoplanets, completed its system-level thermal vacuum test in May 2024, successfully demonstrating that it performs to its threshold requirements in a flight-like environment. Please join me as we walk through the design, function, and performance demonstration of one of the most complex optical instruments NASA has ever attempted to fly.