Title of Document: STUDIES OF THE EFFECTS OF ATMOSPHERIC TURBULENCE ON FREE SPACE OPTICAL COMMUNICATIONS.

Even after several decades of study, inconsistencies remain in the application of atmospheric turbulence theories to experimental systems, and the demonstration of acceptable correlations with experimental results. This dissertation shows a flexible empirical approach for improving link performance through image analysis of intensity scintillation patterns coupled with frame aperture averaging on a free space optical (FSO) communication link. Aperture averaging is the effect of the receiver size on the power variance seen at the receiver. A receiver must be large enough to collect sufficient power and reduce scintillation effects at a given range, but must also be of practical size. An imaging system for measuring the effects of atmospheric turbulence and obscuration on FSO links will be presented. Weak and intermediate turbulence results will be shown for an 863 meter link at the University of Maryland. Atmospheric turbulence has a significant impact on the quality of a laser beam propagating through the atmosphere over long distances. Turbulence causes intensity scintillation and beam wander from propagation through turbulent eddies of varying sizes and refractive index. This can severely impair the operation of targe