Abstract
Infrared signature management (IRSM) has been a primary aeronautical concern for over 50 years. Most strategies and technologies are limited by the second law of thermodynamics. In this article, IRSM is considered in light of theoretical developments over the last 15 years that have put the absolute status of the second law into doubt and that might open the door to a new class of broadband IR stealth and cloaking techniques. Following a brief overview of IRSM and its current thermodynamic limitations, theoretical and experimental challenges to the second law are reviewed. One proposal is treated in detail: a high power density, solid-state power source to convert thermal energy into electrical or chemical energy. Next, second-law based infrared signature management (SL-IRSM) strategies are considered for two representative military scenarios: an underground installation and a SL-based jet engine. It is found that SL-IRSM could be technologically disruptive across the full spectrum of IRSM modalities, including camouflage, surveillance, night vision, target acquisition, tracking, and homing.
Highlights
Signature management has existed as long as there have been predator and prey
Infrared emissions are central for both defensive and offensive weaponry since waste heat is a thermodynamic necessity for any system that consumes any form of free energy, or that is out of thermal equilibrium with its surroundings
This article examines the implications of second law subversion to Infrared signature management (IRSM) for active systems—that is, for systems that consume free energy and generate waste heat
Summary
Signature management has existed as long as there have been predator and prey. In human affairs, it has been motivated by hunting and warfare for hundreds of thousands of years. Infrared emissions are central for both defensive and offensive weaponry since waste heat is a thermodynamic necessity for any system that consumes any form of free energy (e.g., chemical, photonic, nuclear), or that is out of thermal equilibrium with its surroundings. This article examines the implications of second law subversion to IRSM for active systems—that is, for systems that consume free energy and generate waste heat This would not apply to passive systems, e.g., the thermal emissions from a re-entry vehicle, or the IR from the sky reflected off an aircraft fuselage. The remainder of this paper is organized as follows: in Section 2 principal theoretical concepts relevant to IRSM and SL-IRSM are summarized; in Section 3 recent second law challenges are reviewed and an experimentally-testable model is described in detail; in Section 4 two military scenarios for SL-IRSM are explored; and in Section 5 the outlook for SL-IRSM is considered
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