Discrete phase conjugate technique for precompensation of laser beams transmitted through turbulence

Claim 1

In combination with a laser transmitter which produces a laser beam, and in combination with a target beam which is received, a beam control system comprising: a shared aperture component which receives and splits said laser beam from said laser transmitter to produce an outgoing laser beam and a sample beam, said shared aperture component receiving and reflecting a conjugated sample beam, said shared aperture component also passing said target beam through it; a retroreflector array which receives said sample beam from said shared aperture component, said retroreflector array producing a conjugated sample beam by reflecting said sample beam while conjugating errors in said sample beam, said retroreflector array sending said conjugated sample beam back to said shared aperture component; a means for measuring subaperture tilt differences between beams, said measuring means receiving said conjugated sample beam and said target beam from said shared aperture component, said measuring means producing a first output signal by measuring subaperture tilt differences between said conjugate sample beam and said target beam, said measuring means producing a second output signal by measuring aperture tilt differences between said target beam and said conjugated sample beam; and servo-controlled optical elements which receive said first and second output signals from said measuring means, said servo-controlled optical elements receiving said outgoing laser beam from said shared aperture component, said servo-controlled optical elements adjusting said outgoing laser beam so that it becomes a conjugate of said target beam by adjusting said outgoing laser beam to remove any aperture tilt difference and subaperture tilt differences between it and said target beam.