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Breaking the Tyranny of the Rocket Equation with Photons

Explore how scalable Photonic Laser Thrusters (PLT) can overcome the rocket equation, revolutionizing space travel and enabling commercial opportunities. Discover the potential applications and benefits of PLT, including precise thrust control, propellantless operation, and enhanced satellite capabilities. Learn about the key role PLT can play in future space missions and infrastructure development. Join the discussion on the breakthrough technologies and collaborative efforts driving the space commercial revolution.

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Breaking the Tyranny of the Rocket Equation with Photons

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  1. Breaking the Tyranny of the Rocket Equation with Photons Future In-Space Operation Colloquium November 9th 2016 Young K. Bae, Ph.D. CEO Y.K. Bae Corp Credit: NASA ykbae@ykbcorp.com 714-838-2881 www.ykbcorp.com

  2. What is holding us from the Space Commercial Revolution? The Tyranny of the Rocket Equation Propellant Mass ΔV ) - 1 ( exp = Rocket Dry Mass Isp g

  3. “Using those established means, it would be closer to $10 billion per person, which is completely out of reach for many people who might otherwise be willing to uproot their lives and make such a daring trip (to Mars).” NASA FY 2016 Budget: $18.6 billions Elon Musk, The Verge, Sept 2016

  4. Vacuum Tube Vacuum Tube Calculator: ENIAC Computer/Information Revolution Transistor Integrated Circuit

  5. The Tyranny of the Rocket Equation Conventional Thruster Conventional Spaceship ? Space Commercial Revolution Scaled-up Photon Thruster Photon Thruster

  6. Single-bounce Photon Thruster

  7. Recycling Single-bounce Photon Thruster

  8. Photon Thruster X10,000 Recycled Photon Thruster X1,000 Recycled Photon Thruster Y.K. Bae, Physics Procedia 38 ( 2012 ) 253 – 279

  9. Recycling Beamed-Photon Propulsion Photon Source Spacecraft + Mirror Lens/Mirror

  10. Recycling Beamed-Photon Propulsion 50 years of attempts failed. Photon Source Spacecraft + Mirror Lens/Mirror

  11. Photonic Laser Thruster Spacecraft + Mirror Photon Source Mirror 2006 Proof-of-Concept Demo* Thrust = 0.035 mN Recycling Enhancement: 100 *under the auspice the former NIAC

  12. Photonic Laser Thruster (PLT)

  13. PLT Thrust Measurement Setup* *Patent Pending NIST/Scientech/Navy

  14. 500 kW

  15. Photonic Laser Thruster 1U CubeSat Propulsion Demo: Amplified Laser Power: 450 kW CW Thrust: 3 mN

  16. The key to the transistor success: Stepwise commercial applications First Integrated Circuit First Transistor Electronic Devices with Several Transistors Computer/Information Revolution Device, Network & Applications Explosion Early Computers

  17. Pathway to Commercial Space Revolution Stepwise development supported by the return on investment Timely & judicious government stimulus Wise and enthusiastic private investment

  18. Near-Term Potentials of Photonic Laser Thruster (PLT) • The PLT Innovative Capabilities: • Ultra precision in control of thrust magnitude and vector • Propellantless/plume-free contamination-free operation • Inherent Optical Metrology for Precision Positioning • Inherent Power Beaming to Reduce SWaP • Providing the Ultimate Isp • PLT Potentially Enables: • Ultra-precision persistent formation flying • Propellantless stationkeeping and orbit maneuvering • Enhancement of the capability of small satellites, such as CubeSats • Application Examples: • Virtual Telescopes • Synthetic Aperture Radars • Earth Magnetic Field Monitoring • Distributed Satellite Systems

  19. Small Spacecraft Maneuver with Photonic Laser Thruster

  20. Resource Platform PLT Permits Separation of Valuable Mission Platforms from the Expendable Resource Platforms. Mission Platform

  21. Mission Demonstration Concept: PLT X-ray Interferometer 100 m – 1 km

  22. Aiming at the Future When scalable, Photonic Laser Thruster can revolutionize the space commercialism. Acceleration/Deceleration ~ 1 g Travel time ~ 3 days

  23. Infrastructures for Computer/Communication Revolution Cell Towers IC Chip Fab Facilities Com Sats Semiconductor R&D Large Scale Mining Fiber Optics Network

  24. Infrastructure Examples for Space Commercial Revolution with Photon Thrusters TUI SSP In-space Manufacturing Robotics Autonomous Space Systems In-space 3D Printing

  25. Scaling up of PLT • Can we overcome the diffraction limit? • A photon is a boson: Bose-Einstein Condensation (BEC) • Recent Demonstration of Photon BEC in a micro-cavity at low power Condensed Photons

  26. ?

  27. Conclusions • Photonic Laser Thruster (PLT), a recycled photon thruster, is projected to overcome the tyranny of the rocket equation, if scalable. • Photonic Laser Thruster has been successfully demonstrated in lab. • PLT permits the near-term applications that can generate investment returns. • Stepping stones for developing large scale PLTs and Photonic Railway. • PLT flight demonstrations in earth-orbits and mission studies and demonstrations are proposed to be the next logical steps. • The science and technologies, such as Bose-Einstein condensation of photons, which can overcome the diffraction limit of laser beam propagation over long distance, are recommended for the near-term R&D.

  28. Acknowledgements Support: NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) - new NASA Institute of Advanced Concepts (NIAC) - old Collaborators: HagopInjeyan Lawrence Williams Joseph Harkenrider Bong Wie (University of Iowa) Dausinger-Giessen GMBH NIST ScientechInc Navy

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