A group of scientists from China’s leading military technology research institute has announced that they are developing a new defense technology similar to the energy shield depicted in science fiction films.
This invisible protective barrier consists of charged ions ready to safeguard drones, missiles, and other weapons of China against microwave attacks (ultra-high frequency waves with wavelengths ranging from approximately 30 cm [1 GHz] to 1 cm [30 GHz]), akin to technologies portrayed in the realm of science fiction cinema.
When the radiation from an attacker appears, the energy shield activates immediately, with its resilience increasing after each escalating attack.
Chinese scientists are striving to bring the energy shield from science fiction to reality. (Illustrative image).
Modern technology is vulnerable to high-power microwave waves. Even military chips enhanced with special circuits can struggle to withstand microwave attacks carrying several kilowatts of power at close range.
These powerful waves disrupt the circuitry within chips and cause internal temperatures to soar.
The research team, led by Chen Zongsheng, a collaborative researcher at the State Key Laboratory on Pulsed Laser Technology at the Chinese Defense Technology University, stated that their “low-temperature plasma shield” can protect sensitive circuits from bombardments by electromagnetic weapons with power levels of up to 170 kW at a distance of just 3 meters.
Laboratory tests have demonstrated the feasibility of this innovative technology.
“We are in the process of developing miniaturized devices to bring this technology into reality,” Chen and his collaborators wrote in a peer-reviewed paper published in the Defense Technology Journal of the National University of China in December 2023.
Chen’s team indicated that their research is driven by pressure from the United States.
“The U.S. has deployed devices such as the Active Denial System, the Vigilant Eagle electromagnetic pulse weapon system, the AGM-86 cruise missile capable of emitting microwaves, and high-power microwave weapons to enforce airspace restrictions,” Chen’s team noted in their paper.
“The U.S. military is doubling its investment in this field. If the electronic information systems of the People’s Liberation Army of China are destroyed, even the most advanced weapons and equipment will be rendered ineffective or turned into scrap metal,” the research team further added.
According to publicly available information, the Chinese military is also developing high-power microwave weapons — some with maximum output close to or exceeding 1 GW — to target remote objects like high-altitude drones or even low Earth orbit satellites similar to SpaceX’s Starlink.
Previously, the protection of electronic devices focused primarily on circuits. However, as the power of offensive devices increases, Chinese scientists have proposed additional protective measures, such as super-surface protective layers that can change their physical structure to adjust to incoming electromagnetic waves. However, this solid protective layer faces challenges in simultaneously addressing heat and electronic interference issues.
The plasma-based energy shield represents a completely new approach that recalls the principles of “using softness to overcome hardness” in Tai Chi — rather than directly countering destructive electromagnetic attacks, it seeks to transform the attacker’s power into defensive energy.
Chen’s team first mathematically demonstrated that this strategy does not violate fundamental physical laws and then turned their ambitions into reality by using minimal electrical energy to create a stable plasma layer.
According to the paper, when electromagnetic waves come into contact with these charged particles, they can immediately absorb the energy of the electromagnetic waves and transition to a highly active state.
If the enemy continues to attack or even escalates their strength at this moment, the plasma will abruptly increase in density within space, reflecting most of the random energy like a mirror.
Chen and his colleagues noted after summarizing experimental data: “The thicker the plasma, the higher the protective effectiveness. When the high-power microwave ceases, the plasma will quickly return to its initial state due to the lack of external energy maintaining it.”
The requirements of the Chinese military for the energy shield include not only strong protective capabilities but also the ability to remain undisturbed when transmitting low-power electromagnetic waves, as the protected drones or missiles must also be capable of sending or receiving signals.
Moreover, to prevent the adversary from attempting to penetrate the plasma by altering microwave frequencies, the effective feedback frequency range of the energy shield must be as broad as possible.
Another fundamental challenge is that the device generating the energy shield itself must withstand high-power microwave attacks while maintaining minimal size, weight, and energy consumption.
Chen’s team indicated that they are addressing these issues.
