Nova and Novette alignment systems

The Nova and Novette alignment systems guide laser pulses through the separate amplifier chains to the target and ensure simultaneous arrival at the target. Alignment tasks accomplished prior to each target shot involve automatic or remote-manual adjustments of ~2000 stepper motors and other actuators for the full 20-beam 3-wavelength Nova system. The sensor packages and individual detectors used for gathering alignment and diagnostic data are modular to minimize the number of different design and fabrication efforts. For example, the output sensor1 comprises separate, but essentially identical, modules for each of the 3 operating wavelengths.