Exploring Military SF: Realistic Energy Shields

[GTOM]

I am writing a military SF, and wonder, what could be the most realistic things, that are close to the old SF concept of energy shields.
So far, i wrote that a small mecha uses a handheld plasma shield against an incoming missile. Like explosive reactive armor, it meant to shatter the projectile, before it could penetrate armor.
In space the challenge is much bigger due to very high closing speed. Even shrapnels can be pretty dangerous. Maybe ionise them with lasers, particle beams, then use an electric, or magnetic field to divert them? i guess the field has to extend to a big range from the hull. Maybe it is more suitable for a space station, and a ship should rather rely on high energy lasers and manuevering?
No hyperspace and things like that in my setting, only fusion drives.

 

[Rive]

handheld plasma shield

Did you specify the working principles for that one, or it was just entrusted to the imagination of the reader?

 

[GTOM]

Did you specify the working principles for that one, or it was just entrusted to the imagination of the reader?

I didnt feel i needed lengthy explanations. I described it glowed white, then destroyed the missile.

 

[Rive]

Then I don't think you need much more explanation for the spaceship-sized version either.

You may include some technobabble that the mecha-sized mobile one was limited in size/form due energy requirements, but the ship has enough beef to extend it and bend it to shape. That'll cover it nicely, I guess.

Once you went with the general popcult stuff without inventing any tech details to back it up you better keep it that way.

 

[GTOM]

Then I don't think you need much more explanation for the spaceship-sized version either.

You may include some technobabble that the mecha-sized mobile one was limited in size/form due energy requirements, but the ship has enough beef to extend it and bend it to shape. That'll cover it nicely, I guess.

Once you went with the general popcult stuff without inventing any tech details to back it up you better keep it that way.

I might cared more about tech details, if i knew anything about plasma and ball lightning physics, how it is possible to contain plasma without a large external structure.

 

[Rive]

how it is possible to contain plasma without a large external structure.

There are things beyond saving once they brought up in a hard quasi-realistic Sci-Fi and popcult plasma shields are just one of them.
And the more you want to fabricate some real physics to back it up, the worse: past a point it won't do even for technobabble (sadly, Star Wars did that numerous times in their 'extra content', for example).

Please don't misunderstand: those popcult plasma shields are just nice - if you really need them for a story then you should just use them without any worry. But trying to add 'real' physics in a story where a plasma shield is used is just about messing up the genre and should be avoided if possible.