Based on a close cooperation and team approach, Rheinmetall Waffe und Munition and NKT Photonics have reached a new milestone with their laser technology.
The 12 narrow linewidth high-power lasers are a main component of the effector. They are based on NKT Photonics’ industrial and space-qualified Koheras single-frequency laser platform.
“The results from the projects were achieved in a very short time frame and demonstrate the robustness and scalability of our high-performance fiber laser platform”, says Thomas Oldemeyer, Senior VP of NKT Photonics’ Aerospace & Defense division.
Aerospace and defense applications, like the current project with Rheinmetall, are among the most demanding in terms of performance and requirements on robustness in a harsh environment. For such applications, fiber lasers are ideal as the monolithic design is inherently robust and scalable. Furthermore, as a vertically integrated fiber laser manufacturer, NKT Photonics can tailor the lasers to the application all the way from the raw glass going into the fibers to the final design of the laser.
“NKT Photonics is proud to be the selected partner in this project and to further support our growth ambitions in the Aerospace and Defense industry, we will continue to invest in our production facility in Germany”, says Basil Garabet CEO and President of NKT Photonics.
Both parties intend to further increase the level of co-operation aiming for a volume and power optimized version aiming for 100 kW within the next 2 years.
See also the Rheinmetall press release