Session 2.6f Update: Power at the Edge: Ultra-efficient Pulsed Lasers for Space-borne Defence, Communications and Sensing
Tracks
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| Wednesday, November 18, 2026 |
| 1:30 PM - 2:30 PM |
| Swan Room |
Presentation Outline
Space-borne defence systems are increasingly constrained by limited onboard power, thermal rejection capacity, payload mass, and mission endurance. These constraints are particularly severe for optical communications, precision sensing, and other high-peak-power photonic payloads, where conventional laser architectures can impose heavy electrical and cooling burdens. This presentation outlines a high-efficiency pulsed-laser architecture for space-borne systems that is designed to deliver twice the efficiency of comparable conventional high-energy laser approaches, equating to roughly half the electrical power demand for the same optical mission output. For spacecraft and other power-constrained defence platforms, this is a highly practical advantage: lower input power, lower waste heat, reduced cooling requirements, and a more realistic pathway to compact or battery-supported operation.
The talk will examine how this efficiency improvement can translate directly into mission benefits for defence space communications and sensing, including increased payload endurance, simplified thermal management, reduced subsystem complexity, and improved suitability for responsive or deployable architectures. It will also discuss the supporting amplifier optimisation concepts behind the architecture and how they enable high-energy pulsed performance in formats better suited to sovereign space capability. By reducing the power and cooling penalty normally associated with advanced laser payloads, this approach offers a pathway to more capable optical systems for future military and space operations, where energy efficiency is not merely a performance metric, but a mission-enabling requirement.
Speaker
Dr Nikolaus Metzger
CEO
high-E Photonics
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Biography
Dr Nikolaus Klaus Metzger is Founder, CEO and Lead Laser Engineer of high-E Photonics in Canberra, where he leads development of high-efficiency pulsed-laser systems for defence, space, and other mission-critical applications. His work focuses on compact, power-efficient laser architectures for next-generation optical communications, sensing, and space-borne systems.
He has more than two decades of international experience across high-energy lasers, solid-state and fibre amplifiers, optical payloads, and the translation of advanced photonics into deployable hardware. Before founding high-E Photonics, he was Director of Laser Science and Technology at TAU Systems, where he developed high wall-plug-efficiency laser architectures and led programs from concept through prototype and productisation.
Earlier, at NKT Photonics in the United Kingdom, Dr Metzger was Senior Laser Engineer and Project Manager, working on the Koheras line and contributing to a 3 kW defence laser platform and advanced continuous-wave fibre-laser systems for space and defence applications.
His experience also includes battery-powered rugged optical systems at Nomad Atomics and high-power InnoSlab amplifier development at AMPHOS. Dr Metzger holds a PhD from the University of St Andrews and has worked across Europe, the United States, and Australia on operationally relevant photonic systems.
He has more than two decades of international experience across high-energy lasers, solid-state and fibre amplifiers, optical payloads, and the translation of advanced photonics into deployable hardware. Before founding high-E Photonics, he was Director of Laser Science and Technology at TAU Systems, where he developed high wall-plug-efficiency laser architectures and led programs from concept through prototype and productisation.
Earlier, at NKT Photonics in the United Kingdom, Dr Metzger was Senior Laser Engineer and Project Manager, working on the Koheras line and contributing to a 3 kW defence laser platform and advanced continuous-wave fibre-laser systems for space and defence applications.
His experience also includes battery-powered rugged optical systems at Nomad Atomics and high-power InnoSlab amplifier development at AMPHOS. Dr Metzger holds a PhD from the University of St Andrews and has worked across Europe, the United States, and Australia on operationally relevant photonic systems.
