Solar Powered Death Ray

[happytomato]

use the sun to pump a yag rod.

edit:  use Nd:Cr:YAG.

That's actually a very good idea! I like that.

 

[Beta]

Helio, you are pretty much spot on with that diagram in describing my design. I'd like to collimate the sunlight to make a beam.

Also, couldn't a polarizing lens deal with the problem of sunlight not being coherent?

And to people that are after giant fresnel lenses, get this- you can find them in big screen rear projection TV's and they're as big as the screen is

 

[Switch]

Also, couldn't a polarizing lens deal with the problem of sunlight not being coherent?

No.

You cannot collimate sunlight with DIY technology.

 

[pseudolobster]

[quote author=keeperx link=1214940865/0#3 date=1214998906]http://dsc.discovery.com/fansites/mythbusters/application/application.html

too bad that contest closed three years ago..[/quote]

CORRECTION:

Mythbusters is doing this AGAIN, and they're calling for volunteers again.
http://blog.makezine.com/archive/2008/07/help_mythbusters_recreate.html

 

[heruursciences]

I built a solar powered dye laser that produced about 56W at 610nm tunable from 730nm to about 545nm. It was pumped with a HUGE fresnel lens focusing on the dye jet from a coherent ring laser. The light was directed with a few other mirrors ripped out of spectrometers and finally focused with a condenser lens ripped out of an old overhead projector. The trick is adding other dyes to the mix that absorb the UV and short wave blue so the rhodamine can work effectively. The mode was *absolutely* horrid though.

The look on my laser tech instructor's face was absolutely priceless, especially since he seemed to be scared to death of any laser over say 50mW and it was made entirely of "obsolete" and "useless" equipment :-X

 

[FrothyChimp]

[quote author=pseudolobster link=1214940865/0#4 date=1215062606][quote author=keeperx link=1214940865/0#3 date=1214998906]http://dsc.discovery.com/fansites/mythbusters/application/application.html

too bad that contest closed three years ago..[/quote]

CORRECTION:

Mythbusters is doing this AGAIN, and they're calling for volunteers again.
http://blog.makezine.com/archive/2008/07/help_mythbusters_recreate.html[/quote]

I would like to be there for that, but I will be in San Francisco hangin' with the Mythbusters in October. It would be hard to get away in September also.

 

[Petrovski]

I would like to be there for that, but I will be in San Francisco hangin' with the Mythbusters in October. It would be hard to get away in September also.

Sounds cool. Mythbusters is one of my favorite discovery programs. Care to elaborate on what you will be doing with them besides "hangin'"? Setting up a 60W green?

 

[FrothyChimp]

I'll be having dinner with a few of the crew and some other invited guests.

Here's a behind the scenes picture of Adam being accosted by Peter Rees, the executive producer at the time. This was taken by a friend of mine out at Alameda NAS.

 

[diachi]

You get to be with the MythBusters frothy ?? *wimpers* You Lucky Luck lucky man !

 

[FrothyChimp]

Well not very often. The last time I was there they were cutting up the Mercedes for the giant subwoofer myth and the build team was working on the gunpowder engines. The research crew had a giant CAD drawing of a flying wing spread out all over the floor preparing for the concrete glider myth. I got to at least mention that the flying wing design was too unstable to build as a demonstration for a concrete glider and a more traditional design would probably work better.

 

[diachi]

Wow thats still lucky ! now im interested, what degrees if any do you have Frothy ?

 

[FrothyChimp]

I have three degrees and working on my doctorate.

 

[Petrovski]

Interesting stuff. Is that dinner a business dinner since your company or university are involved with the mythbusters program? Or do you even have a personal invitation? Hmmm sorry for the personal questions.

Anyway I personally wouldn't mind having a peek 'behind the scenes' at the mythbusters set. I reckon it would be fun.

 

[Helioplasma]

how'bout this (after reading herruurscience's post)
V

 

[diachi]

Wow nice stuff, you must be really smart : I want to get a degree in physics and another in network communications when I leave school doubt i'll ever have 4 degress though like frothy who has nearly 4, good luck on your fourth

 

[FrothyChimp]

Thanks Diachi, I have degrees in Banking Management, Neuroscience, Information Technology, and working on the doctorate.

Petrovski: The dinner is a fun dinner not business, although I'll probably bring a few selected lasers out to demonstrate to Dan (the executive producer) if he's available. He travels back and forth between Australia and the U.S. (Beyond Productions is an Aussie based company but the filming is done in San Francisco)