Germans build, successfully test laser weapon

A German company used a futuristic laser weapon to cut through a half-inch thick steel girder from 2/3 of a mile away.

But don’t try running away just yet: Dusseldorf-based Rheinmetall Group also reported that its new 50kW high-energy weapon technology can successfully detect and engage targets.

The company announced its 2012 year-end operational testing at the Ochsenboden Proving Groud (EZO) in Switzerland, where it successfully overcame tough environmental conditions including snow, ice, rain and blinding sunlight to neutralize targets.

Since 2011, the company has increased the power of its lasers five-fold, producing twice the laser output within the same volume. The weapon was run against five different scenarios including air defense; countering rockets, artillery, and mortar (abbreviated C-RAM or counter-RAM); and asymmetric warfare operations.

And Rheinmetall showed that laser weapons could be placed at different locations and work together to create one superbeam against a target, a technology it calls Beam Superimposing Technology.

We will have to develop “hand held laser guns” to get around the upcoming gun bans...

There are very few examples in history where oppressed people successfully and legally "worked around" laws. The point of being the dictator is that you can change the law at any time, whenever you want. Those who worked around are now facing confiscations or arrests. Those who refuse are taken down with overwhelming force and painted in pocket MSM as terrorists.

In this aspect the first part of Deus Ex is a good illustration. If you are not familiar, here is how it goes. A young security agent joins a UN anti-terrorist coalition (UNATCO.) The country is suffering from an epidemic, and the only treatment - which must be taken weekly - is imported from Hong Kong in small quantities and distributed only to people in power. Peasants die by the million. His opponents are terrorists who steal shipments of drugs and indirectly threaten powerful families. Their MSM declares UNATCO the good guys, and the chief denounces any wrongdoing.

Later in the story the agent finds out that UNATCO is not the good guys, and the terrorists are not exactly terrorists. But this knowledge will be denied to people until the agent does what he has to do and enforces one way of life or another. The masses have no say in his choice and know nothing about the real lay of land; fortunately they are largely NPCs. I'm telling all this to point out that the dictator has everything that he needs to fully control the public opinion; a few "real terrorists," laying around in pools of blood after being taken down by the brave defenders of the ~~fater~~homeland will only enhance his message. The dictator will be believed because the lie can be crafted to be pleasant to the ear, but the truth is always what it is. People are more likely to believe what they want to believe, and sweet lies are the way to do it.

lithium ion cell and heavy duty capacitors to get enough energy for short lethal bursts

At this level of technology you would be better off with a Taser that is upgraded to deliver lethal current. Beam weapons are too inefficient. Short bursts are also a problem. The weapon needs to deliver energy, which is power over time. The shorter the burst is, the less energy you are delivering. But the duration of the pulse is restricted by the specs on those laser diodes; probably they are rated for a few watts over 100 µs or so. If you want to deliver some good joules to the target you need kilowatts in the pulse because any burst longer than a millisecond will probably be too long, cooling-wise. Also consider that even if you manage to get a laser to burn a 50 mil self-sealing hole in the opponent, the opponent will not be stopped or killed. There is no science on stopping effects of beam weapons yet, but from what we can read in books you have to go for wider beams to disable vital organs. This requires even more power. Human body is mostly water, and to burn a hole through that you need lots and lots of energy. Just look at your microwave oven, it's probably rated for 2 kW AC, and you need a couple minutes to boil a cup of cold water. [Specific heat of water is 4.187 kJ/kgK, so to raise the temperature of 0.2 kg of water by 80K you need (4.187 kJ * 0.2 kg * 80K) = 67 kJ. If your oven delivers 1 kW into the cup, the time is 67 kJ / 1 KW = 67 seconds. Add thermal losses, and you are at two minutes.]

In this aspect, a pair of well insulated gloves and a 1 kV, 1A power source (1 kW in pulse!) will do much better. If you need a ranged weapon ... consider a spear.

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