CACI’s optical technologies enable highly secure communications in RF-challenged, restricted, or denied environments. Optical carrier frequencies can transmit more data with lower SWaP than comparable RF systems. Our optical technology has deployed onboard missions such as NASA’s integrated laser communications relay demonstration (LCRD) Low Earth Orbit User Modem and Amplifier Terminal (ILLUMA-T) now operating on the International Space Station.CICADA® PDF

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CACI’s laser communications technology is aboard NASA’s Psyche spacecraft, a first-of-its-kind deep space and optical communications (DSOC) technology demonstration mission to the Psyche asteroid.

Not to be confused with the term "achromatic" is the correction induced in the objective lens to adjust for focusing errors caused by field curvature.  Since a lens is curved, the sharpness of the image may be a bit off at the outer edges of your field of view.  You can, of course, refocus slightly to bring it in, but then the center part of the image will be a bit out of focus (and this is all assuming that the specimen is perfectly flat, which is not usually the case!)  Field curvature effects are most noticeable at the higher powers.  Think of the field of view as a big pizza.  At the outer edges, some of the pepperoni may look a bit fuzzy.

CACI produces advanced photonics-based communications, sensing, and processing technologies for space, air, land, and maritime environments. These include optical modems and terminals; high-power sources for free-space optical (FSO) communication and remote sensing; and space exploration systems.

How doesfree space optical communicationwork

CACI’s laser sensing technology enables near-term airborne and space light detection and ranging (LiDAR) applications mainly for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) missions, where there is an increased need for wide-area surveillance and long-range object identification.

Some of the problems encountered with the optical characteristics of a lens are caused by the refraction of light as it passes through the lens system.  White light is really a combination of many different colors and each color refracts or "bends" at different angles when passing through a lens.  The inability of a lens to bring all of the colors into a common focus results in a slightly different image size and focal point for each predominant wavelength group. This leads to chromatic aberrations or colored fringes surrounding the image.

Read Linda Braun’s latest commentary, “Lighting the Future: How CACI is Revolutionizing Optical and Photonic Solutions,” to learn more about our advancements in optical communications for our defense, intelligence, and other national security customers.

Special techniques must be employed to compensate for these chromatic aberrations.  First, by using two different types of glass (sandwiched into a "lens doublet") with different refractive indices, this effect can be minimized.  Lenses that employ these techniques are called "achromatic lenses ".   This simply means that they refract light with little spectral color separation.  Achromatic lenses are the most common type sold with microscopes.

Free Space optical communicationppt

At left are a variety of objective lenses:  Achromat, Semi-Plan, Super High Contrast, and Plan (all are 100x objectives).

free-space lasercommunicationpdf

free-spaceoptical communicationpdf

Whether it’s for land, air, or space, our people continually develop new applications for a range of missions – from tactical operations to national intelligence needs.

CACI’s laser sensing technology enables near-term airborne and space light detection and ranging (LiDAR) applications mainly for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) missions, where there is an increased need for wide-area surveillance and long-range object identification.

CACI’s CrossBeam was the first Space Development Agency (SDA)-compliant terminal to successfully complete optical communication terminal (OCT) interoperability testing - establishing a consistent data communication link with the reference modem.

CACI’s CrossBeam was the first Space Development Agency (SDA)-compliant terminal to successfully complete optical communication terminal (OCT) interoperability testing - establishing a consistent data communication link with the reference modem.

Advantages offree space optical communication

The standard achromatic objectives guarantee flat focus quality for 60% of your field of view.  This is actually quite a bit as the outer 40% of the area of the "pizza" has a relatively larger circumference (draw a circle on paper and see what I mean).  If you are shooting pictures through your microscope or need more than 60% of a flat field, you might choose the semi-plan or plan lenses.  Semi-plan lenses guarantee a flat field for 80% of the field of view and plan lenses (the best) are a full 100%.  These lenses are also achromats, correcting for the color dispersion effects.

Objective lenses are the lenses of a microscope closest to the object and are the most important single part of your microscope.  The quality of objective lenses varies widely from manufacturer to manufacturer and the only way to evaluate objective lenses is to physically compare one with another.  Having performed evaluations like this, we have come to the conclusion that the optics offered by National Optical, Motic and Meiji are superior in quality to other instruments found in their price range.

Free SpaceOptics equipment

Free space optical communicationprojects

Our technologies increase efficiency through tradeoffs between range and bandwidth and enable low probability of intercept (LPI) and low probability of detection (LPD) with reduced size, weight, and power (SWaP) and inherent immunity to radio frequency (RF) interference and jamming.

CACI’s laser communications technology is aboard NASA’s Psyche spacecraft, a first-of-its-kind deep space and optical communications (DSOC) technology demonstration mission to the Psyche asteroid.

Regardless of the satellite manufacturer, CACI is often the secret ingredient to the most successful optical communications missions. We bring a rare synergy of research and development coupled with our valuable intellectual property to meet ever-increasing mission demands.​

CACI’s optical technologies enable highly secure communications in RF-challenged, restricted, or denied environments. Optical carrier frequencies can transmit more data with lower SWaP than comparable RF systems. Our optical technology has deployed onboard missions such as NASA’s integrated laser communications relay demonstration (LCRD) Low Earth Orbit User Modem and Amplifier Terminal (ILLUMA-T) now operating on the International Space Station.

Our multi-disciplinary teams, located in California, Florida, and New Jersey, design and build the most mature optical communications technologies right here in the United States. For more than two decades, we have developed advanced capabilities that meet and exceed U.S. government requirements​ – and are ready to deploy in support of deep space exploration and space operations from a variety of orbits, including low earth (LEO),  medium earth (MEO), highly elliptical (HEO), and geostationary (GEO).

The highly contested space environment demands secure, reliable, and resilient communications. CACI’s low-risk optical communication, sensing, and processing technology enables the success of some of our nation’s most critical missions from the battlefield to deep space.

CACI’s optical communication, sensing, and processing solutions are the U.S. government’s preferred choice for secure communications across several orbits and missions.