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  • The Department of the Air Force announced June 4, 2021, the designation of Rocket Cargo as the fourth Vanguard program as part of its transformational science and technology portfolio identified in the DAF 2030 Science and Technology strategy for the next decade. (U.S. Air Force illustration)

    Department of the Air Force announces fourth Vanguard program

    Under the Rocket Cargo Vanguard, the Air Force Research Laboratory will lead a science and technology effort to determine the viability and utility of using large commercial rockets for Department of Defense global logistics, potentially expanding the portfolio of capabilities the USSF presents to combatant commanders.
  • From left to right, AFRL Vice Commander Col. Paul Henderson, Materials and Manufacturing Directorate Chief Scientist Dr. Richard Vaia, and Deputy Director Col. Michael Warner cut the ribbon to open the renovated Materials Characterization Facility at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. (U.S. Air Force photo/Spencer Deer)

    AFRL Materials Characterization Facility pushes state of the art

    The Air Force Research Laboratory at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base has recently renovated their materials characterization facility (MCF) to meet the ever-advancing needs of materials research. By renovating 3,700 square feet of existing laboratory space, the facility has been designed to keep pace with analytical research technology, thereby “future-proofing” it for the next generation of instrumentation, according to program manager Dr. Todd Butler. A ribbon-cutting ceremony on May 26 officially opened the new facility.
  • 1st Lt. Jonathan “Luke” Hill, a researcher with AFRL, poses with his Dean's List certificate he earned while attending the Air Force Institute of Technology at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. (Courtesy photo)

    AFRL researcher’s passion for hypersonics propels his success

    WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio (AFRL) – An AFRL researcher grew up with two parents who worked as pharmacists, so he was initially interested in medicine as a young student. Once he reached high school, though, his passion for mathematics blossomed, thanks to one of his high school teachers. This teacher showed him that math has real-world
  • Flight Officer Camron Iverson of the Washington State Patrol tested laser protection lenses formulated at AFRL’s Materials and Manufacturing Directorate. (Courtesy photo)

    Washington State Patrol pilots successfully test special laser eye protection developed at Wright-Patterson Lab

    Aiming a laser at an aircraft is a federal crime that can net offenders up to five years in jail or cost them a $250,000 fine. Even with this heavy potential penalty, laser strikes have become increasingly more common. According to the FAA, 6,852 such incidents were reported in 2020, compared with 385 in 2006, and so far this year, incidents of “joy lasing” are up 20 percent over last year. Cheap and easily obtained, hand-held lasers used as pointers and cat toys are certainly harmless when used as intended. But when they are aimed at the cockpit of an aircraft, they can temporarily blind the pilot — with possibly deadly consequences.
  • Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, 2021’s ceremony was held virtually. Recipients, shown clockwise from upper left, are: Doyle Edwards, Dr. Joey Mead, Dr. Jeremy Ward and Dr. Courtney Taylor. (Photo courtesy of Nextflex)

    AFRL Materials scientist receives NextFlex 2021 Fellow Award

    Dr. Jeremy Ward, a scientist at Wright-Patterson’s Air Force Research Laboratory, has received a 2021 Fellow Award from NextFlex, America’s Flexible Hybrid Electronics (FHE) Manufacturing Institute. Ward was one of four recipients.
  • This image taken by NASA’s Mars 2020 Perseverance shows tracks from the rover’s first drive. It also shows an area that was scoured clean by the craft’s descent stage rockets — the lighter-colored area shown near the center-top. Testing done at AFRL’s Materials and Manufacturing ensured the landing craft’s protective coating would survive being blasted by that debris. (Photo courtesy of NASA)

    Testing done at AFRL made Perseverance and the search for life on Mars possible

    On February 18, 2021, NASA’s rover Perseverance touched down on the surface of Mars to begin searching for evidence of past life. The success of this touchdown would not have been possible without the work of a team of researchers who operate unique erosion testing equipment in a windowless bunker at Wright-Patterson’s Air Force Research Lab. And this is not the only Dayton connection to this particular Mars mission.
  • A gauge stand measures the effect of an explosion during the snow mitigation test on March 18, 2021, at Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska. The foil pieces are used to measure the blast caused by the explosion. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Danielle Sukhlall)

    Team from Air Force Research Lab finds a way to use packaged snow as explosion protection

    In March 2021, a team from Wright-Patterson Air Force Base’s Junior Force Warfighter Operations in the Materials and Manufacturing Directorate (designated “JFWORX”) led a collaborative, live-fire test with explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) personnel from the 354th Civil Engineer Squadron at Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska. Because the extreme cold of Alaskan winters often makes standard ordnance disposal procedures inadequate if not impossible, JFWORX was asked to formally evaluate the use of a readily available resource — snow — as a protective barrier between live ordnance and people or property or both.
  • Diane Buhrmaster, engineer at the Air Force Research Laboratory's Materials and Manufacturing Directorate, received the 2020 Brigadier General Wilma Vaught Visionary Leadership Award in the Civilian Category. (U.S. Air Force courtesy photo)

    Air Force Research Laboratory engineer receives Vaught Visionary Leadership Award

    Ms. Diane Buhrmaster, Coatings Technology Team Lead for AFRL’s Materials and Manufacturing Directorate, has received the 2020 Brigadier General Wilma Vaught Visionary Leadership Award in the Civilian Category. This annual award was created in honor of General Vaught for her outstanding service and dedication to the Air Force and the nation. It is presented to an officer (O-6 and below), enlisted person (E-9 and below) and a civilian (GS-15 and below) to recognize that individual’s visionary leadership, innovative efforts and beneficial effect on the U.S. Air Force.
  • Dr. Chad Husko, CEO and founder of Iris Light, holds a 300 mm silicon wafer. (Courtesy photo)

    AFRL approves Cooperative Research and Development Agreement for silicon photonics

    The Air Force Research Laboratory recently approved a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement between its Nanoelectronic Materials Branch and Iris Light Technologies. The collaboration will be working to develop hybrid silicon lasers. Sometimes called the “holy grail of optoelectronics,” these miniature lasers are part of a broader field of technology known as silicon photonics.
  • From the left to right, Drs. Derek A. Bas, Piyush J. Shah and Michael R. Page. In the tweezers, Bas is holding a chip that contains an array of four isolators. A state-of the-art commercial RF isolator has a much greater size and weight than the AFRL device. (U.S. Air Force photo/Dr. Michael Wolf)

    AFRL researchers demonstrate record-breaking RF isolator performance in ultra-compact device

    As the USAF continues with the unrelenting pursuit of driving down the size, weight and power of radio frequency (RF) components, the inherent challenges in these types of technologies are compounded. The typical difficulties of making smaller mechanical and physical components, however, are dwarfed by the challenges posed by making the required onboard electronic equipment smaller, lighter, and less power-hungry.
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