DARPA SETS NEW RECORD FOR WIRELESS POWER BEAMING

Summary from the TLDR newsletter

The United States' Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) recently transferred over 800 watts of power over about 30 seconds with a laser beam across 8.6 kilometers. The estimated power efficiency was around 20%. The team used commercial ready-to-use solar cells placed within a receiver to turn the laser beam into electricity. Laser technologies are more suitable than infrared for building an airborne power relay network due to their high precision, long-range reach, and lighter and smaller equipment required to work.