U.S. Naval Research Lab’s NIKE laser refocused from NIF to nuclear deterrence…

07 May 2025

...and Florida Atlantic University awarded $2.1 M to establish U.S. Air Force Center of Excellence.

Just doing it: Laser Plasma Branch at the U.S. Naval Research Lab.

The U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) has announced a new strategic direction for its NIKE laser-target facility to align its capabilities with the Department of Defense’s (DoD) nuclear strategic priorities.

The new mission marks a shift from the facility’s historical focus on Department of Energy objectives, specifically those related to the National Nuclear Security Administration. The initiative emphasizes NRL’s commitment to advancing national security through cutting-edge science and technology.

Originally constructed in 1995 with support from the NNSA, the NIKE laser was designed to explore the physics of direct-drive inertial confinement fusion in support of the Nation’s nuclear stockpile stewardship mission.

“NIKE is the world’s most energetic krypton-fluoride excimer laser, delivering ultrasmooth pulsed beams at a wavelength of 248 nm with 2-3 kilojoules of energy,” said Dr. Jason Bates, head of NRL’s Laser Plasma Branch. “These capabilities enable researchers to generate strong, stable shock waves and create exceptionally clean experimental conditions for studying extreme physical states of matter.”

For decades, the NIKE facility and its scientific team have contributed to NNSA’s flagship laser program at the National Ignition Facility, which achieved its landmark goal of ignition, in which the fusion of hydrogen nuclei produces more energy than the laser energy used to drive the reaction.

New mission: nuclear deterrence

Through the work of its research team, and a strategic partnership with the Air Force, NIKE’s capabilities are now being harnessed to address the central science and technology needs of the DoD’s nuclear deterrence mission.

“This partnership between NRL and the Air Force Research Laboratory represents a vital leap forward in our ability to simulate and understand the extreme environments that nuclear assets must navigate,” said Bates. “NIKE’s laser and diagnostic capabilities are enabling us to close critical gaps in assessing the survivability of our platforms.”

With adversaries such as China and Russia racing to build similar excimer-laser technologies, maintaining and safeguarding the NIKE facility is essential. A recapitalization and reinvestment strategy is underway to secure NIKE’s future and support the revitalization of the Nation’s nuclear deterrence capability.

“NRL’s NIKE facility is an important national asset with unique capabilities that allow it to serve a broad range of missions supporting stockpile stewardship, fusion energy research, directed energy, hypersonics, and fundamental studies of materials at extreme conditions. Its continued operation for the good of the USA remains our goal through its new focus,” said Joe Peñano, Ph.D., superintendent of NRL’s Plasma Physics Division.

Florida Atlantic granted $2.1M to found U.S. Air Force Center of Excellence

Dimitris Pados, principal investigator and director of the CA-AI.

In a further example of the new U.S. Administration refocusing its attention on defense-related photonics, the Department of Defense Air Force Research Laboratory has awarded a $2.1 million grant to a research group at Florida Atlantic University (FAU).

To address “critical U.S. Air Force communications needs”, Dr. Dimitris Pados, PI and director of the Center for Connected Autonomy and Artificial Intelligence in FAU’s College of Engineering & Computer Science and the Institute for Sensing & Embedded Network Systems Engineering (ISENSE), and Dr. George Sklivanitis, co-PI and research associate professor in the CA-AI, have received the grant to establish the FAU Center of Excellence for Research and Education in Programmable Wireless Networks.

“In the future, the military will operate in environments where the electromagnetic spectrum is fiercely contested,” said Pados. “Communication systems will be jammed and interfered with, making reliable communication and data sharing increasingly difficult. To overcome these challenges, we need innovative solutions to minimize interference and maximize utilization of these critical frequencies.

The FAU Center of Excellence’s program will be built on three pillars aimed at advancing communications in contested electromagnetic environments: developing advanced algorithms for secure and agile spectrum operations; creating secure, high-performance hardware solutions, including processors, GPUs and FPGA fabrics; and workforce development, with a comprehensive approach to education at all levels, from high school to doctoral programs.

“Our FAU Center of Excellence will be at the forefront of developing a new generation of engineers and computer scientists who will be equipped to tackle the growing challenges in electromagnetic spectrum operations,” said Dr. Stella Batalama, dean of the College of Engineering and Computer Science.

“As adversaries around the world become more sophisticated in their ability to disrupt communications, it’s imperative for the United States to stay ahead of the curve. This center will produce the next wave of talent and technology that will ensure we maintain control of the electromagnetic spectrum, preventing adversaries from gaining any upper hand in communications, navigation or radar systems.”