SBIR/STTR Award attributes
Physical Sciences Inc. (PSI) proposes to develop an intensity-dependent infrared filter that will use the radiant intensity of a source (i.e. the sun) to locally control the infrared transmission of the filter. There currently exists an Air Force need for optical source exclusion to allow next-generation infrared camera technology to observe a large field of view (+/- 45 degrees, ~ 15% of the sky), as well as current generation gimballed and strap-down systems that can be temporarily blinded when the sun passes through the field of view. PSIs filter will be placed at an intermediate focal plane and will use the full spectrum of the suns energy to attenuate the IR transmission only where the image of the sun is formed, allowing the bright source to be passively dimmed without distorting or blocking the rest of the image field, and will not require an external power source.
