New candidate lasers for power beaming and discussion of their applications
Solar power has obvious advantages for long-duration high-power laser operations in space, provided that cost effective conversion of solar photons to laser photons can be accomplished. Both the CO baseline system and the iodine direct-pumped system described in the present paper imply total system weights of 50 to 150 thousand kilograms per 100 MW of power transmitted. To equal the contemplated 5 to 10 GW of each microwave-linked space power system now being studied would require 50 to 100 STAG-type devices having total weights in orbit in the range of (2.5 to 15.0) by 10 to the sixth kilograms. The analysis indicates that laser options can be from 2 to 20 times more favorable weight-wise than other space power system options. The cost advantages would scale similarly.