Frequency-agile laser radar using a periodically-polled lithium niobate optical parametric oscillator

The incorporation of an optical parametric oscillator (OPO) as the light source for a laser radar system provides remote sensing with frequency agility. Periodically-poled LiNbO/sub 3/ (PPLN) is an especially promising material for this application because it allows custom engineering of tuning characteristics. The design of such a system, theoretical modeling of clutter reduction performance, and preliminary experimental data are presented in this paper.