Sandia Labs FY22 Laboratory Directed Research & Development Annual Report

MULTIPLE HIGH-POWER PHASE-LOCKED HPM SYSTEMS HAVE THE ABILITY TO INCREASE DIRECTED ENERGY STRIKE EFFECTIVENESS.

Advantages to a phased array of high-power microwave (HPM) systems include increased power and range of engagement in various defense applications. The pinnacle challenge to achieving such systems lies in controlling the initial random phase of the HPM. This LDRD explored seed-locking the gigawatt (GW)-class HPM source to an orders-of-magnitude lower seed signal. Seed locking is achieved by creating the electromagnetic fields in the HPM tube prior to plasma oscillations to lock the plasma mode to these established fields. During this three-year LDRD, a GW-class,

S-Band HPM system was constructed to oscillate at two narrowband frequencies. In collaboration with the Air Force Research Laboratory, a one megawatt, commercial-off-the-shelf magnetron was integrated into the HPM system as the seed. Ultimately, evidence of phase-locking between the two sources was not concluded. Timing between the seed source and the HPM pulsed power is critical, and the shot-to-shot jitter varied tremendously. This HPM system will serve as a testbed for new and ongoing research into distributed HPM systems. (PI: Andrew Sandoval)

GW Class S-Band high-power microwave system.

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LABORATORY DIRECTED RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT