Thanks to DARPA, Tesla's dream of wireless energy is coming

“On the technology side, significant advancements have been made in high-energy lasers, wavefront sensing, adaptive optics, high-altitude electric air platforms, safety interlocks, and narrow-bandgap-tuned high-efficiency photovoltaics,” Col. Calhoun explains.

“POWER is an optical power beaming program,” Calhoun says. “There are other potential power-beaming modalities, such as microwaves, that we intend to explore in future programs. For POWER, the propagating wave is a laser [that] provides long-range high-throughput capability when transmitted at high altitudes. The relays redirect the laser energy without conversion, and then the end-user converts that laser energy back into electricity using narrow-bandgap-tuned monochromatic photovoltaics,” he added.

Another critical piece of the puzzle will be reliable relays too. “Building on these advancements, DARPA sees a significant opportunity to revolutionize energy distribution by developing effective relays. These relays will allow these existing technologies to come together effectively to form a resilient, adaptive, multi-path wireless energy network,” Calhoun said.

Relays in the form of long-endurance drones and satellites will play a crucial role in the future. These drones, hovering at high altitudes, will transmit laser energy to each other over extended distances before delivering it to a U.S. military base. Similarly, satellites will perform the same mission in space.

“POWER is developing stratospheric platforms with small apertures ranging approximately 100 kilometers between nodes. With larger apertures and a more benign environment like space, distances between nodes of up to 1,000 kilometers are reasonable,” Calhoun added. The result would be a “globally scalable energy distribution network.”

As with all of its projects, once DARPA has demonstrated the POWER project's viability in theory, it will turn it over to other government organizations for actual implementation. Additionally, there are clear uses for POWER in the commercial sphere, such as supplying energy to far-flung communities, research facilities, and other challenging locations. Additionally, the energy could come from renewable resources, making it both environmentally friendly and widely available.