Lockheed Martin Cools IR sensors

Lockheed Martin has unveiled a micro-sized cryocooler to chill infrared (IR) sensors.

IR sensors on missiles and ISR devices needed to be cooled to as low as -320 degrees Fahrenheit. The Lockheed Martin device uses the same miniaturized compressor as the standard micro-cryocooler, but with a new cold head that is 54 millimeters long, or less than the length of older models, according to a company news release.

"The Fast Cool Down Microcryocooler makes sure our military can have rapid-reaction systems, from missile to passive sensor applications," said Jeffrey Olson, a scientist at  Lockheed Martin's Advanced Technology Center. "We can cool an IR sensor in 3 minutes, versus the 12 to 15 minutes of current systems."

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