Telescopic systems for investigating the atmosphere

The constructions of telescopic systems used in experiments on transporting converging laser beams through the atmosphere are examined. A new, large-s ize, large-aperture mirror system with phase-conjugation compensation of th e aberrations of the main mirror has been developed. Such systems operate i n a double-pass mode, where additional curvature is introduced into the bea m in the second pass. In contrast to existing schemes where a holographic o ptical component performs this function, the present design employs a lens made of a birefringent material. (C) 1999 The Optical Society of America. [ S1070-9762(99)01411-6].