Flight-Ready TDLAS Combustion Sensor for Hypersonics

We describe a multipath scramjet combustion diagnostic sensor based on Tunable Diode Laser Absorption Spectroscopy (TDLAS) of water vapor. Developed for the Hypersonic International Flight Research and Experimentation program (HIFiRE), the sensor incorporates electronics and optics optimized for sensitive TDLAS in a package compact and rugged enough for flight in a sounding rocket. Design considerations and sensor performance are described.