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[[File:Security force field, 2364.jpg|thumb|A security force field]]
===Technical data===
 
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A '''force field''' is an [[energy]] barrier with many applications and varying degrees of strength.
   
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==Composition and use==
A '''Force field''' is an [[energy]] barrier. The [[Starfleet (Earth)|Earth Starfleet]] began research on force fields in [[2147]]. ([[ENT]]: "[[Vox Sola]]")
 
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Although force fields had been in use for many years, [[Starfleet]] did not begin research on such a device until around [[2147]], then referred to by [[Malcolm Reed]] as a "stable EM barrier." By about [[2152]], Starfleet hadn't found a method of controlling the particle [[density]] of the field. Reed nonetheless made use of such a barrier to save several crew members, including [[Jonathan Archer]]. ({{ENT|Vox Sola}})
   
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{{bginfo|The fact that Starfleet had been struggling to determine how to control the force field's particle density was not scripted. Also, although Reed states these efforts had been ongoing for the past five years prior to the setting of "Vox Sola", the episode's final draft script leaves this as an indeterminate number of years instead.|From the {{ste|4|1|280}}, "''Malcolm's force field emitters were devised by {{s|ENT}} property master [[Craig Binkley]]. If you look closely at the props, you might notice that they have four energy emitter gizmos that bear a striking resemblance to [[Lieutenant]] [[Uhura]]'s [[earpiece]] receivers from the original ''[[tos|Star Trek]]'' series. Purely coincedental, of course.''"}}
:''This episode marks the first time an [[Earth]] [[starship]] possesses the technology to produce a force field.''
 
   
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By the [[24th century]], [[Starfleet]] force fields were commonplace and were rated by intensity, ranging in strength from levels 1 through 10. A level 10 force field was the strongest and was used, for example, during a scientific experiment of which the outcome was unknown, or known to be explosive in nature. Applications ranged from creating [[hologram]]s to sealing a [[hull breach]] to [[personal force field]]s designed to keep potential assailants at bay. ({{TNG|Realm Of Fear|The Most Toys}}; {{film|7}}; {{film|9}}; {{DS9|Playing God|Starship Down|Take Me Out to the Holosuite}}; {{VOY|State of Flux|Course: Oblivion}})
Force fields can be produced with a strength ranging from level 1 to level 10.
 
   
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{{bginfo|During pre-production of {{s|TNG}}, a type of device called a "landing envelope" would have placed "''a protective power field envelope around a person or [[landing party]], allowing [[away team]]s to visit planets with much more hostile environments than was possible in the past.''" The [[reference works|reference book]] ''[[Star Trek: The Next Generation 365]]'' (p. 004) hypothesizes that the exclusion of this concept from the series may have been due to the strain it would have put on both the effects budget and, by lowering the amount of peril typically encountered on [[away mission]]s, the writing staff. (''[[Star Trek: The Next Generation 365]]'', p. 004)}}
A level 10 force field is the strongest and is mainly used when maximum protection is required. This type of force field would be used, for example, during a scientific experiment from which the outcome is unknown, or known to be explosive in nature. ([[TNG]]:"[[Realm of Fear]]")
 
   
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[[File:Sisko forcefield.jpg|thumb|left|[[Joran Dax]] in control of [[Benjamin Sisko]] bangs his head against a force field]]
[[Image:Security Officers against Forcefield.jpg|thumb| Security officers run into a force field that [[Data]] created.]]
 
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The effects of a force field on its surroundings varied greatly. Contact with a force field could cause anything from a slight tingle to [[death]]. Most force fields were non-lethal, although some civilizations such as the [[Dominion]] preferred the lethal variety. If a force field was active, an object or [[transporter]] beam generally could not pass through it, although this was not always the case. The [[Borg]] were known to not be hindered by most force fields; they could adapt and simply walk through the field. This was effected by having the [[cranial implant]] activate particular [[nanoprobe]]s to adjust the drone's [[bioelectric field]]. However, a [[Borg drone]] could be cut off from the [[Borg Collective|Collective]] if it was surrounded by a [[Starfleet]] level 10 force field. ({{DS9|The Jem'Hadar}}; {{TNG|I Borg}}; {{VOY|Hope and Fear}})
   
 
Force fields could be activated from various locations. On Starfleet [[starship]]s there were emitter points at almost every junction along every [[corridor]]. The [[computer]] could be programmed to run a series of force field activations and deactivations within the ship, effectively creating a protected corridor which could follow a person. {{Commander}} [[Data]] used this technique with great control when he commandeered the {{USS|Enterprise|NCC-1701-D|-D}} on [[stardate]] 44085.7. He also demonstrated another technique involving instructing the computer to implement a scan series of force field activations, initiated by his movements along a short distance of corridor, thus forcing the security team to back away from him. ({{TNG|Brothers}})
If a force field is active, an object or a [[transporter]] beam cannot pass through it. Although this is the expected standard behavior of a force field, this is not always the case. The [[Borg]] are known to not be hindered by force fields; they can adapt and simply walk through the field. However, a [[Borg drone]] can be cut off from the [[Borg Collective]] if it is surrounded by a [[Starfleet]] Level 10 force field. ([[TNG]]:"[[I, Borg]]").
 
   
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[[File:Soran's forcefield, Veridian III.jpg|thumb|Tolian Soran's large force field active on Veridian III]]
Force fields can be activated from various locations. On Starfleet [[starship]]s there are emitter points at almost every junction along every corridor. The [[computer]] can be programmed to run a series of force field activations and de-activations within the ship, effectively creating a protected corridor which can follow a person. [[Commander]] [[Data]] used this technique with great control when he commandeered the [[USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-D)|USS ''Enterprise-D'']] on [[stardate]] 44085.7. He also demonstrated another technique involving instructing the computer to implement a scan-series of force field activations, activated by his movements along a short distance of corridor, thus forcing the security team to back away from him. ([[TNG]]: "[[Brothers]]").
 
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If part of a [[humanoid]] body was caught in a force field while it was activated, the person could suffer second-degree burns on the affected area. ({{DS9|Civil Defense}})
   
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[[Tolian Soran]]'s force field on [[Veridian III]] generated an output of fifty [[gigawatt]]s. ({{film|7}})
If necessary, a [[transporter platform]] can be completely enclosed within a force field, to, for example, contain an alien subject, or prisioner during tranport. ([[TNG]]:"[[Realm of Fear]]")
 
   
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When various security measures left over from the [[Cardassian]] occupation came on-line on [[Deep Space 9]], [[Elim Garak]] was recognized as a person of sufficient importance by the computer to have the force fields dividing the station drop when he approached. ({{DS9|Civil Defense}})
:''Presumably, to be cut in half by a force field is extremely dangerous, because [[Worf|Lt. Worf]] warned the rest of the team to stay back as the field approached.''
 
   
 
If necessary, a [[transporter platform]] could be completely enclosed within a force field, to, for example, contain an [[alien]] subject or prisoner during transport. ({{TNG|The Hunted|Realm Of Fear}}; {{VOY|Death Wish|Demon}})
===Containment field===
 
A containment field is essentially a force field used to prevent the escape of [[matter]] or [[antimatter]].
 
   
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[[File:Hole in prison force fields.jpg|thumb|Selective positioning in effect]]
Containment fields are usually raised when [[cargo bay]] or [[shuttlebay]] doors are opened to keep them pressurised although the containment field is partially disengaged when a [[shuttlecraft]] passes through it. Unfortunately, eighteen [[engineer]]s from the crew of the ''[[USS Yamato]]'' were killed when the containment field in one of the shuttlebays failed after the ship was infected with an [[Iconian software transmission]]. ([[TNG]]: "[[Contagion]]") A containment field can be manually activated and deactivated should the need arise. ([[TNG]]: "[[Disaster]]")
 
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Force fields were also capable of selective positioning, allowing the majority of it to cover a secure location, while a smaller portion was deactivated to allow transport of food, drinks, and other items. This method was used when it would be considered dangerous to deactivate the entire force field. ({{VOY|Repentance}})
   
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==Types of force fields==
Containment fields can also be used to reinforce [[antimatter containment]] although they cannot prevent an impending [[warp core breach]]. Lt Cmdr Data raised a Level 3 containment field around the [[warp core]] of the ''Enterprise''-D in [[2369]] when the ship was facing destruction by a core breach. ([[TNG]]: "[[Timescape]]") By [[2379]], it was a standard proceedure on the ''[[Enterprise-E]]'' for the warp core to be reinforced by a high-level force field before engaging in battle. (''"[[Star Trek: Nemesis]]"'')
 
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=== Cadderon force field ===
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[[File:Cadderon force field.jpg|thumb|A cadderon force field]]
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In [[2369]], [[Major]] [[Kira Nerys]] created cadderon force fields to arrest the [[Klaestron]]s who kidnapped [[Jadzia Dax]] and secured the [[airlock]] to their [[Klaestron starship|starship]]. [[Ilon Tandro]] was able to override the system and deactivate the cadderon force field. ({{DS9|Dax}})
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{{clear}}
 
=== Containment field ===
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[[File:Sovereign Engineering.jpg|thumb|A warp core containment field]]
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[[File:Containment field strength PADD.jpg|thumb|In the [[mirror universe]], shooting at a containment field can weaken it to the point of collapse in a matter of seconds.]]
 
A '''containment field''', also known as a '''spatial distortion field''', was essentially a force field used to prevent the escape of [[matter]] or [[antimatter]].
   
 
Containment fields were usually raised when [[cargo bay]] or [[shuttlebay]] doors were opened to keep them pressurized, although the containment field was partially disengaged when a [[shuttlecraft]] passed through it. Unfortunately, eighteen [[engineer]]s from the crew of the {{USS|Yamato}} were killed when the containment fields in a shuttlebay failed after the ship was infected with an [[Iconian software transmission]]. ({{TNG|Contagion}}) A containment field could be manually activated and deactivated should the need arise. ({{TNG|Disaster}}) Containment fields would be used by Starfleet personnel to isolate an area for investigation, such as using a field to isolate a [[transporter room]] pad to beam aboard a sample of an object. ({{VOY|Death Wish}})
===Inertial dampers, structural integrity and emergency force fields===
 
   
 
Containment fields could also be used to reinforce [[antimatter containment]], although they could not prevent an impending [[warp core breach]]. [[Lieutenant Commander]] Data raised a level 3 containment field around the [[warp core]] of the ''Enterprise''-D in [[2369]] when the ship was facing destruction by a core breach. ({{TNG|Timescape}}) By [[2379]], it was a standard procedure on the {{USS|Enterprise|NCC-1701-E|-E}} for the warp core to be reinforced by a high-level force field before engaging in battle. ({{film|10}})
The structural integrity of a [[starship|ship]] or [[starbase]] can be enhanced by force fields. This way the [[hull]] can absorb more mechanical stresses.
 
   
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''In an [[alternate timeline]] [[Miles O'Brien]] tried to create a sort of a containment field in [[sickbay]] to retain [[Benjamin Sisko]] on the station. He was unable to and Sisko went into the [[temporal displacement]] again.'' ({{DS9|The Visitor}})
The [[inertial damper|Inertial dampning systems]] consist of a network of force fields that continually adapt and compensate for the inertial effects of interstellar travel. They are almost entirely controlled by the ship's computer, which allows for instant fine adjustment of these fields' geometries, and to even anticipate resultant forces from the engines.
 
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{{clear}}
   
 
=== Structural integrity and emergency force fields ===
[[Image:Voyager shields.jpg|thumb|An example of defensive force field shielding]]
 
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[[File:Containment field.jpg|thumb|An emergency force field]]
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[[File:Jadzia Dax walks across force field.jpg|thumb|Jadzia Dax walks across an emergency force field]]
 
The [[structural integrity]] of a [[starbase]], [[starship]], or [[shuttlecraft]] could be enhanced by force fields. This way the [[hull]] could absorb more mechanical stress.
   
 
In the event of an outer [[hull breach]], emergency force fields were automatically deployed to protect the damaged part from the influences of [[space]]; at the same time they prevented decompression of the entire [[deck]] by keeping the [[atmosphere]] in. During critical situations, such as ship-to-ship battles, if the main defensive force field was ruptured and a section of the ship was destroyed, it took longer for the computer to re-establish the [[structural integrity field]] than usual because of the large energy demands already placed on the vessel. In this short space of time, sections of a vessel could indeed be exposed to the vacuum of [[space]]. [[Captain]] [[James T. Kirk|Kirk]] was lost to the vacuum of space in this way, in [[2293]], when the {{USS|Enterprise|NCC-1701-B|-B}} was struck by the [[Nexus]] energy ribbon. ({{film|7}})
Starships and starbases are often equipped with external force field emmitters, which, when activated, produce a 'bubble' around itself, known as [[shield|defensive shields]]. These shields are variable, and can even be extended to encompass a nearby vessel or object. ([[TNG]]: "[[The Defector]]"). Defensive force fields can be penetrated in two ways. The most conventional method involves firing energy weapons at the shielded object, which weakens the field. The other method is acheived by matching the frequency of the shield to the weapon used. ([[Star Trek: Generations]]). [[Chroniton torpedo]]s cannot be stopped by normal shielding but require some kind of [[temporal shield|temporal shielding]]. ([[VOY]]: "[[Year of Hell, Part I]]").
 
   
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A [[lieutenant]] aboard the ''Enterprise''-E was blown out into space in [[2379]] before an emergency force field could be activated when the [[bridge]] front wall and [[viewscreen]] were destroyed by the [[Reman]] warbird ''[[Scimitar]]''. ({{film|10}}) A similar incident happened during the "Year of Hell" when an alien ship was disabled by the Krenim timeship's conventional weapons, and collided with the almost-already-crippled USS ''Voyager''{{'}}s bridge front/viewscreen and portions of her decks. Fortunately, Captain Janeway was not blown out into space, due to the quick activation of the emergency atmospheric force fields. ({{VOY|Year of Hell, Part II}})
In the event of outer [[hull breach]], force fields are automatically deployed to protect the damaged part from the influences of [[space]]; at the same time it prevents decompression of the entire deck by keeping the [[atmosphere]] in. During critical situations ,such as ship-to-ship battles, if the main defensive force field is ruptured, and a section of the ship is destroyed, it takes longer for the computer to re-establish the structural integrity field than usual because of the large energy demands already placed on the vessel. In this short space of time, sections of a vessel can indeed be exposed to the vacuum of [[space]]. [[James T Kirk|Captain Kirk]] was lost to the vacuum of space in this way, in [[2293]], when the [[USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-B)|Enterprise B]] was struck by the [[nexus]] energy ribbon. ([[Star Trek: Generations]]). A [[lieutenant]] aboard the [[USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-E)|Enterprise-E]], in [[2379]], was sucked out into space before an emergency force field could be activated, when the bridge front wall and [[viewscreen]] were destroyed by the [[Reman]] warbird, [[Scimitar]]. ([[Star Trek: Nemesis]])
 
   
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A plasma leak caused by an explosion on the {{USS|Defiant|2370}} was covered by a level 8 force field, which [[Jadzia Dax]] then walked across in order to tend to Dr. [[Lenara Kahn]]. ({{DS9|Rejoined}})
On stardate 49263.5, the [[USS Defiant (NX-74205)|USS Defiant]], under the command of [[Benjamin Sisko|Captain Sisko]], decended into the atmosphere of a [[Class J planet|Class-J]] gas giant, with 10,000kmph wind speeds. The emergency force field that was erected to save the ship from decompression due to a hull breach was not able to withstand the pressure for more than a few minutes. ([[DS9]]: "[[Starship Down]]")
 
   
 
On stardate 49263.5, the {{USS|Defiant|2370}}, under the command of Captain [[Benjamin Sisko]], descended into the [[atmosphere]] of a [[Class J gas giant]] with 10,000 kilometer per hour wind speeds. The emergency force field that was erected to save the ship from decompression due to a hull breach was not able to withstand the pressure for more than a few minutes. ({{DS9|Starship Down}})
:''In essence all force fields are the same - the function they perform depends on their strength. A transporter can still beam something inside a containment field but not through a defensive shield, although this might have something to do with the procedures crewmembers have to follow when preforming a certain task.''
 
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{{clear}}
   
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=== Defensive shielding ===
===Examples of other federation force field applications===
 
 
[[File:Voyager shields.jpg|thumb|Defensive force field shielding]]
 
Starbases, starships, shuttlecraft, and even advanced weaponry were often equipped with external force field emitters, which, when activated, produced a "bubble" around the generating object, known as [[deflector shield|defensive shields]]. ({{VOY|Dreadnought|Warhead}}) These shields were variable, and could even be extended to encompass a nearby vessel or object. ({{TNG|The Defector}}) Defensive force fields could be penetrated in two ways. The most conventional method involved firing energy weapons at the shielded object, which weakened the field. The other method was achieved by matching the frequency of the shield to the weapon used. ({{film|7}}; {{VOY|Equinox, Part II}}) [[Chroniton torpedo]]es could not be stopped by normal shielding but required modifications to enable [[temporal shield]]ing. ({{VOY|Year of Hell}})
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{{clear}}
   
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=== Security screen {{anchor|Security screen}} ===
[[Image: EMHMarkI.jpg|thumb|The EMH Mark I]]
 
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A '''security screen''' (also referred to as a '''security cover''' or '''security force field''') was a type of force field employed by the Federation that surrounded the [[Tantalus Penal Colony]]. In addition to standard force field features, this security screen was also capable of blocking ship-to-shore [[communication]]s, preventing contact between the [[colony]], which was situated on [[planet]] [[Tantalus V]], and nearby [[spacecraft]]. The security screen could be deactivated with a control that was in the [[office]] of the colony's [[director]]. Furthermore, the words "security screen" were visible on a wall of the colony's main power chamber, from where the force field could also be turned off.
On [[holodeck]]s, force fields are used to give objects substance so people can manipulate them like in real life. These forcefields have no substance outside the holodeck. They can be configured to either allow passage of 'real' matter, or appear solid.
 
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{{bginfo|These words were instead [[script]]ed to read "force field".}}
   
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While [[Captain]] [[James T. Kirk]] was visiting Tantalus colony in [[2266]], the security screen blocked contact between a [[communicator]] he had with him and the {{USS|Enterprise|NCC-1701}}, which was [[orbit]]ing the planet. After [[Doctor]] [[Tristan Adams]] (the colony's director at that time) informed Kirk that the security screen was in effect, Adams temporarily turned off the force field, permitting Kirk to contact the ''Enterprise''.
In [[sickbay]] a force field can be used to separate a patient from the rest of the crew when a contagious disease is diagnosed or when that patient needs a specific environment to stay alive. ([[TNG]]: "[[Brothers]]", [[VOY]]: "[[Demon]]")
 
   
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Later, shortly after [[Spock]] [[beam]]ed into the colony, he deactivated the security screen from the main power chamber. He then contacted the ''Enterprise'', with a communicator of his own, to report that the security screen had been eliminated. ({{TOS|Dagger of the Mind}})
The [[EMH]] and other variants ([[ECH]], slave Mark Is) use force fields to mimic substantiality and to allow manipulation of tools, manual computer access, and for the instruction of social interaction.
 
   
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== Other applications ==
Force fields are used to contain prisoners inside the holding cells of various races, including [[Human]]s, [[Klingon]]s and [[Cardassian]]s. ''See also: [[brig]].'' By [[2366]], force field technology had advanced sufficiently to allow a tubular force field to be projected from the ceiling to the floor, to encompass an alien intruder. This was acheived on the [[bridge]] of the [[USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-D)|Enterprise-D]]. ([[TNG]]: "[[Allegiance]]")
 
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=== Federation applications ===
 
[[File: EMH (Enterprise-E).jpg|thumb|The EMH Mark I]]
 
On [[holodeck]]s, force fields were used to give objects substance so people could manipulate them like in real life. These force fields had no substance outside the holodeck. They could be configured to either allow passage of "real" matter, or appear solid.
   
 
In [[sickbay]], a force field could be used to separate a patient from the rest of the crew when a contagious [[disease]] was diagnosed or when a patient needed a specific environment to stay alive. ({{TNG|Brothers}}; {{VOY|Demon|Threshold}})
Most [[Federation]] [[penal colony|penal colonies]] have force fields to prevent escape. Examples include [[Elba II]], and [[Tantalus Penal Colony]]. ([[TOS]]: "[[Whom Gods Destroy]]", "[[Dagger of the Mind]]")
 
   
 
The [[Emergency Medical Hologram]] and other variants ([[Emergency Command Hologram]] and the slave Mark I) used force fields to mimic solidity and to allow the manipulation of tools, manual computer access, and for social interaction.
Onboard the [[USS Defiant (NX-74205)]], by [[2373]], a holo-projection system had been installed on the bridge, linked up to the [[communications]] system. In this way, a person could 'appear' and speak to one another. However, this form of holoprojection had no cohesion, and so they could not interact directly. ''See also: [[holo-communicator]].'' ([[DS9]]: "[[For the Uniform]]")
 
   
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Force fields were used to contain prisoners inside the holding cells of various races, including [[Human]]s, [[Klingon]]s, and Cardassians. Cardassian technology was able to create a tubular force field from the ceiling to the floor in order to encompass an intruder; however, during [[first contact]] with the Dominion, [[Jem'Hadar]] such as [[Talak'talan]] could walk right through them. The Federation had adapted similar technology by [[2366]], and it was in use on the bridge of the ''Enterprise''-D as well. ({{DS9|The Jem'Hadar}}; {{TNG|Allegiance}})
During the late [[2260]]s and early [[2270]]s, a device known as a [[life support belt]] was used onboard Starfleet vessels. This was a type of personal force field that supplies the wearer with the appropriate atmosphere and protects them from the vacuum of space. ([[TAS]]: "[[Beyond the Farthest Star]]", "[[The Slaver Weapon]]") This type of technology has only been seen in one other application. In [[2369]], [[Jean-Luc Picard|Captain Picard]], [[Data|Commander Data]], [[Deanna Troi]], and [[Geordi La Forge]] used [[subspace isolation field]]s, projected from modified [[emergency transporter armband]]s, that enveloped each of them in their own pocket of [[subspace]]. This isolated them from the effects of the [[temporal fragment]] that affected the Enterprise-D. This is an example of a 'skin-tight' force field, rather than the conventional bubble geometry. ([[TNG]]: "[[Timescape]]")
 
   
 
Most Federation [[penal colony|penal colonies]] had force fields to prevent escape. Examples included the [[Tantalus Colony]] (where it was known as a [[security screen]]) and the [[Elba II asylum]]. ({{TOS|Dagger of the Mind|Whom Gods Destroy}})
===Examples of non-starfleet force field applications===
 
   
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During emergencies in a Starfleet [[holodeck]], a holographic force field could be created during a simulation. ({{VOY|Twisted}})
In [[2154]], the [[Enterprise (NX-01)]] encountered an [[Illyrian]] ship in the vicinity of the [[Azati Prime]] system in the [[Delphic Expanse]]. This small ship had a force field surrounding its warp core, which prevented [[Charles Tucker III|Commander Tucker]] from removing it easily. ([[ENT]]: "[[Damage]]")
 
   
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Captain Kirk attempted to use a force field to [[confined to quarters|confine]] [[Charles Evans]] to [[quarters]], in [[2266]]. Once the force field was rigged to the room's door and Evans entered his quarters, the force field was activated by [[Spock]]. When Evans then walked to the door, he was thrown backwards, onto the deck, by the force field. However, it was subsequently made to vanish, along with the [[bulkhead]] containing it, by Evans, who thereby managed to easily escape. ({{TOS|Charlie X}})
In [[2267]], [[Apollo]], from [[Pollux IV]] used advanced force field technologies to create a gigantic [[Apollo's hand|hand]] to hold the [[USS Enterprise (NCC-1701)]] in space. This force field could be penetrated by [[M-rays]] at carefully calculated frequencies. ([[TOS]]: "[[Who Mourns for Adonais?]]")
 
   
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{{bginfo|In the final draft script of "Charlie X", contact with this force field was described as producing "blue sparks of energy" that "instantly outline his body, [and] fling him back into the room." However, no such blue sparks are shown in the final version of the episode, despite collision with the force field clearly throwing Evans back. Also, in scripted but ultimately unused dialogue, it was established that preparing the force field took a minimum of seventy-two hours, that the force field was on [[Constitution class decks|deck five]], and that setting it up made use of the ship's [[lab]] circuitry (all of which, according to the script, ran through the main [[corridor]] on [[deck]] five).}}
In [[2346]], the [[Khitomer]] [[colony]] had a force field to help protect itself from attacks. The [[Khitomer Massacre]] could have been averted, if the [[Klingon]] traitor [[Ja'rod]] had not given the [[Romulans]] the codes to the force field surrounding the colony. ([[TNG]]: "[[Sins of the Father]]")
 
   
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In [[2369]], [[Major]] [[Kira Nerys]] used a force field to prevent [[Chief]] [[Miles O'Brien]] and [[Commander]] [[Benjamin Sisko]] from beaming onto the [[Valerian transport]]. ({{DS9|Dramatis Personae}})
In [[2364]], the crew of the Enteprise-D encountered the [[Echo Papa 607]] weapon, on [[Minos]]. One of the weapon's special features is the ability to encase a target in a bubble force field. ([[TNG]]: "[[The Arsenal of Freedom]]") Earlier that year, the entity known as [[Q]] used an immensely powerful force field to block the Enterprise's passage. ([[TNG]]: "[[Hide and Q]]")
 
   
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The same year, the [[Bajoran]] [[engineer]] [[Neela]] created the program [[ANA]], which granted her access through the security fields on Deep Space 9 after she attempted to [[assassinate]] [[Vedek]] [[Bareil Antos]]. O'Brien found this computer program in a [[security field subsystem]] during maintenance work. ({{DS9|In the Hands of the Prophets}})
In the same year, the Enterprise-D re-discovered the planet [[Aldea]]. The [[Aldean]]s hid their planet behind a very powerful planet-wide [[cloaking device|cloak]] and a defensive shield. ([[TNG]]: "[[When the Bough Breaks]]")
 
   
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In [[2372]], [[Admiral]] [[Leyton]] told [[President of the United Federation of Planets|Federation President]] [[Jaresh-Inyo]] that [[Starfleet Security]] had been stockpiling personal force fields on Earth in case of a planet-wide emergency. ({{DS9|Homefront}})
In [[2367]], Captain Picard, [[Wesley Crusher|Ensign Crusher]], along with a civilian shuttle captain [[Dirgo]], discovered a fountain of water surrounded by a force field, on [[Lambda Paz]]. ([[TNG]]: "[[Final Mission]]")
 
   
 
By [[2373]], a holo-projection system had been installed on the bridge of the USS ''Defiant'', linked up to the [[communications]] system. In this way, a person could 'appear' and speak to others. However, this form of holoprojection had no cohesion, and so people could not interact directly with the hologram. ({{DS9|For the Uniform}}) Holoprojectors of this type were also seen in the captain's office adjacent to [[Operations center|Ops]] aboard [[space station]] Deep Space 9. ({{DS9|Doctor Bashir, I Presume}})
[[Tolian Soran|Dr Soran]] used a high-power force field (rated in gigawatts) to protect himself and his star-destroying weapon from [[Jean-Luc Picard|Captain Picard]] in [[2371]]. ([[Star Trek: Generations]])
 
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[[File:Spacehatch force field.jpg|thumb|left|A force field closing a hatch]]
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[[Jean-Luc Picard]] demonstrated to [[Lily Sloane]] a force field closing a hatch to space aboard the {{USS|Enterprise|NCC-1701-E|-E}} when Lily spotted no [[glass]]. ({{film|8}})
   
 
During the late [[2260s]] and early [[2270s]], a device known as a [[life support belt]] was used on board Starfleet vessels. This was a type of personal force field that supplied the wearer with the appropriate atmosphere and protected them from the vacuum of space. ({{TAS|Beyond the Farthest Star|The Slaver Weapon}}) This type of technology has only been seen in one other application. In [[2369]], Captain [[Jean-Luc Picard]], Commander Data, [[Deanna Troi]], and [[Geordi La Forge]] used [[subspace isolation field]]s, projected from modified [[emergency transporter armband]]s, that enveloped each of them in their own pocket of [[subspace]]. This isolated them from the effects of the [[temporal fragment]] that affected the ''Enterprise''-D. This is an example of a "skin-tight" force field, rather than the conventional bubble geometry. ({{TNG|Timescape}})
By [[2373]], the [[Breen]] had developed a hand-held weapon (the [[CRM 114]]), which can penetrate force fields of upto 4.6 gigajoules. ([[DS9]]: "[[Business as Usual]]")
 
   
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=== Non-Federation applications ===
===References===
 
  +
[[File:Quark Sisko and Eris.jpg|thumb|Quark, Sisko, and [[Eris]] inside a Dominion force field]]
  +
[[File:Paris cannot stop 7 of 9.jpg|thumb|[[Seven of Nine]] protected by her personal shield]]
  +
[[File:Shield Modulation.jpg|thumb|A Borg force field could be bypassed by [[shield frequency|remodulating]] a personal bio-dampener]]
  +
On the [[Akaali homeworld]] in [[2151]], [[Captain]] [[Jonathan Archer]] and [[Commander]] [[Charles Tucker III]], while secretly watched by [[Riaan]], encountered a [[Malurian]] force field covering a [[wood]]en [[door]]. When touched, the force field flashed with {{dis|blue|color}} light. Tucker reported that the force field was "some kind of [[magnetic]] barrier", and he was about to try to disable it when Riaan intervened. The force field was operated via [[remote control]], and once Archer obtained the device from [[Malurian associate 001|a Malurian]], he deactivated the force field. ({{ENT|Civilization}})
   
 
In [[2154]], ''Enterprise'' encountered an [[Illyrian]] ship in the vicinity of the [[Unnamed Alpha and Beta Quadrant star systems#Azati Prime system|Azati Prime system]] in the [[Delphic Expanse]]. This small ship had a force field surrounding its warp coil, which prevented Commander Tucker from removing it easily. ({{ENT|Damage}})
*[[ENT]]: "[[Vox Sola]]"
 
*[[TOS]]: "[[Dagger of the Mind]]"
 
*[[TOS]]: "[[Who Mourns for Adonais?]]"
 
*[[TAS]]: "[[Beyond the Farthest Star]]"
 
*[[TAS]]: "[[The Slaver Weapon]]"
 
*[[TNG]]: "[[Heart of Glory]]"
 
*[[TNG]]: "[[We'll Always Have Paris]]"
 
*[[TNG]]: "[[Brothers]]"
 
*[[TNG]]: "[[Emergence]]"
 
*[[TNG]]: "[[Timescape]]"
 
*[[DS9]]: "[[Second Skin]]"
 
*[[DS9]]: "[[The Die is Cast]]"
 
*[[DS9]]: "[[What You Leave Behind]]"
 
*[[VOY]]: "[[Year of Hell, Part I]]"
 
*[[VOY]]: "[[Pathfinder]]"
 
*[[VOY]]: "[[Faces]]"
 
*[[VOY]]: "[[Initiations]]"
 
*[[VOY]]: "[[Equinox, Part II]]"
 
*[[VOY]]: "[[Drone (episode)]]"
 
*[[Star Trek: Generations]]
 
   
 
In [[2267]], [[Apollo]], from [[Pollux IV]], used advanced force field technologies to create a gigantic hand to hold the ''Enterprise'' in space. This force field could be penetrated by [[M-ray]]s at carefully calculated frequencies. ({{TOS|Who Mourns for Adonais?}})
{{featured}}
 
  +
 
In [[2346]], the [[Khitomer]] [[colony]] had a force field to help protect itself from attacks. The [[Khitomer Massacre]] could have been averted if the [[Klingon]] traitor [[Ja'rod]] had not given the [[Romulan]]s the codes to the force field surrounding the colony. ({{TNG|Sins of The Father}})
  +
  +
In [[2364]], the entity known as [[Q]] used an immensely powerful force field to block the ''Enterprise''{{'}}s passage. ({{TNG|Hide And Q}})
  +
 
Also in 2364, the ''Enterprise''-D rediscovered the planet [[Aldea]]. The [[Aldean]]s hid their planet behind a very powerful planet-wide [[cloak]] and a defensive shield. ({{TNG|When The Bough Breaks}})
  +
 
In the same year, the crew of the ''Enterprise''-D encountered the [[Echo Papa 607]] weapon on [[Minos]]. One of the weapon's special features was the ability to encase a target in a bubble force field. ({{TNG|The Arsenal of Freedom}})
  +
 
In [[2367]], Captain Picard, [[Ensign]] [[Wesley Crusher]], and a civilian shuttle captain, [[Dirgo]], discovered a fountain of water surrounded by a force field on [[Lambda Paz]]. ({{TNG|Final Mission}})
  +
  +
The [[storage locker]]s in the [[assay office]] aboard Deep Space 9 were secured by individual force fields. ({{DS9|Q-Less}})
  +
 
Dr. [[Tolian Soran]] used a high-power force field (rated in [[gigawatt]]s) to protect himself and his star-destroying weapon from Captain Picard in [[2371]]. ({{film|7}})
  +
[[File:Borg force field, 2153.jpg|thumb|left|Borg force fields protecting the drones]]
  +
The [[Borg]] utilized personal defensive force fields. The force field was sufficient to allow survival in space without a [[spacesuit]]. When in combat, Borg drones could be killed by [[phaser]]s but only for the first several shots. The phaser became ineffective if used at the same setting after multiple shots. The phaser's effectiveness could be extended though by adding a frequency modulation chip, but drones would eventually adapt to this as well. ({{TNG|Q Who|The Best of Both Worlds|The Best of Both Worlds, Part II}}; {{VOY|Drone}}) While Borg force fields were formidable against directed energy, they were capable of being bypassed by blunt force, kinetic energy. [[Projectile weapon]]s were notoriously efficient against their shields. {{incite}}
  +
  +
The Cardassians utilized force fields in their [[labor camp]]s to maintain the populace. The [[Hutet labor camp]] utilized such force fields. ({{DS9|The Homecoming}})
  +
  +
Contact with Dominion force fields is always lethal and they are even harder to see than those of the Federation, which are visible to the careful eye. Captain Sisko and [[Quark]] were held in a Dominion force field when they were kidnapped while on a [[camping]] trip with [[Jake Sisko|Jake]] and [[Nog]]. A similar force field was used to hold [[Chief]] [[Miles O'Brien|O'Brien]] and Doctor [[Julian Bashir|Bashir]] hostage when they were taken prisoner by a rogue group of Jem'Hadar. ({{DS9|The Jem'Hadar|Hippocratic Oath}})
  +
  +
The [[Hur'q]] used a force field to protect the [[Hur'q Central Museum]] from looters. A [[Vulcan]] [[mining]] team could not penetrate the field. However, in [[2372]], [[Kor]], [[Jadzia Dax]], and [[Worf]] were able to bypass the force field by reversing the [[polarity]] on the [[field destabilizer]]s.
  +
  +
The [[Vidiian]]s made extensive use of force fields to conceal their underground bases from intruders, making entrances appear like solid rock, even to [[tricorder]]s. This was described as a cloaking effect. Upon first encountering this technology in [[2371]], the {{USS|Voyager}} found that phaser fire could breach them. However, when they encountered such fields a second time later that year, they found them to have been adapted to repulse phaser fire. ({{VOY|Phage|Faces}})
  +
  +
When the Cardassian [[Silaran Prin]] held Kira Nerys prisoner for a brief time, he enclosed her in a personal force field of sorts that prevented her from moving. ({{DS9|The Darkness and the Light}})
  +
 
By [[2373]], the [[Breen]] had developed a hand-held weapon, the [[CRM 114]], which could penetrate force fields of up to 4.6 [[gigajoule]]s. ({{DS9|Business as Usual}})
  +
  +
==Appendices==
  +
=== Appearances and references ===
  +
<div class="appear">
  +
*{{ENT}}
  +
**{{e|Vox Sola}}
  +
**{{e|The Shipment}}
  +
*{{DIS}}
  +
**{{e|The Vulcan Hello}}
  +
**{{e|Battle at the Binary Stars}}
  +
**{{e|Context Is for Kings}}
  +
**{{e|What's Past Is Prologue}}
  +
*{{TOS}}
  +
**{{e|Charlie X}}
 
**{{e|Dagger of the Mind}}
 
**{{e|Who Mourns for Adonais?}}
  +
*{{TAS}}
 
**{{e|Beyond the Farthest Star}}
 
**{{e|The Slaver Weapon}}
  +
*{{TNG}}
 
**{{e|Heart of Glory}}
 
**{{e|We'll Always Have Paris}}
  +
**{{e|Brothers}}
  +
**{{e|Timescape}}
  +
**{{e|Emergence}}
  +
*{{DS9}}
  +
**{{e|The Sword of Kahless}}
 
**{{e|Second Skin}}
 
**{{e|The Die is Cast}}
 
**{{e|What You Leave Behind}}
  +
*{{VOY}}
 
**{{e|Initiations}}
  +
**{{e|Year of Hell}}
  +
**{{e|Drone}}
 
**{{e|Equinox, Part II}}
 
**{{e|Pathfinder}}
  +
</div>
  +
  +
{{bginfo|The first appearance of a force field was in the TOS episode "Charlie X".}}
  +
  +
=== See also ===
  +
* [[Annular confinement beam]]
  +
* [[Arresting field]]
  +
* [[Brig]]
  +
* [[Chroniton field]]
  +
* [[Confinement field]]
  +
* [[Deflector shield]]
  +
* [[Grid]]
  +
* [[Holding cell]]
  +
* [[Hologram]]
  +
* [[Holocommunicator]]
  +
* [[Ionic field]]
  +
* [[Pressor field]]
  +
* [[Regenerative force field]]
  +
* [[Subspace force field]]
  +
  +
=== External links ===
  +
* {{mbeta|Force field}}
  +
* {{eas|treknology/treknology-f.htm|Treknology (F)|external}}
  +
* {{wikipedia|Force field (fiction)|Force field}}
  +
* {{wikipedia|Shields (Star Trek)|Shields}}
  +
  +
{{featured|date=June 2005|id=105530}}
  +
  +
[[fr:Champ de force]]
  +
[[de:Kraftfeld]]
  +
[[ja:フォース・フィールド]]
  +
[[Category:Shield technology]]
  +
[[Category:Energy fields]]

Latest revision as of 13:44, 13 July 2023

Security force field, 2364

A security force field

A force field is an energy barrier with many applications and varying degrees of strength.

Composition and use

Although force fields had been in use for many years, Starfleet did not begin research on such a device until around 2147, then referred to by Malcolm Reed as a "stable EM barrier." By about 2152, Starfleet hadn't found a method of controlling the particle density of the field. Reed nonetheless made use of such a barrier to save several crew members, including Jonathan Archer. (ENT: "Vox Sola")

The fact that Starfleet had been struggling to determine how to control the force field's particle density was not scripted. Also, although Reed states these efforts had been ongoing for the past five years prior to the setting of "Vox Sola", the episode's final draft script leaves this as an indeterminate number of years instead.
From the Star Trek Encyclopedia (4th ed., vol. 1, p. 280), "Malcolm's force field emitters were devised by Star Trek: Enterprise property master Craig Binkley. If you look closely at the props, you might notice that they have four energy emitter gizmos that bear a striking resemblance to Lieutenant Uhura's earpiece receivers from the original Star Trek series. Purely coincedental, of course."

By the 24th century, Starfleet force fields were commonplace and were rated by intensity, ranging in strength from levels 1 through 10. A level 10 force field was the strongest and was used, for example, during a scientific experiment of which the outcome was unknown, or known to be explosive in nature. Applications ranged from creating holograms to sealing a hull breach to personal force fields designed to keep potential assailants at bay. (TNG: "Realm Of Fear", "The Most Toys"; Star Trek Generations; Star Trek: Insurrection; DS9: "Playing God", "Starship Down", "Take Me Out to the Holosuite"; VOY: "State of Flux", "Course: Oblivion")

During pre-production of Star Trek: The Next Generation, a type of device called a "landing envelope" would have placed "a protective power field envelope around a person or landing party, allowing away teams to visit planets with much more hostile environments than was possible in the past." The reference book Star Trek: The Next Generation 365 (p. 004) hypothesizes that the exclusion of this concept from the series may have been due to the strain it would have put on both the effects budget and, by lowering the amount of peril typically encountered on away missions, the writing staff. (Star Trek: The Next Generation 365, p. 004)
Sisko forcefield

Joran Dax in control of Benjamin Sisko bangs his head against a force field

The effects of a force field on its surroundings varied greatly. Contact with a force field could cause anything from a slight tingle to death. Most force fields were non-lethal, although some civilizations such as the Dominion preferred the lethal variety. If a force field was active, an object or transporter beam generally could not pass through it, although this was not always the case. The Borg were known to not be hindered by most force fields; they could adapt and simply walk through the field. This was effected by having the cranial implant activate particular nanoprobes to adjust the drone's bioelectric field. However, a Borg drone could be cut off from the Collective if it was surrounded by a Starfleet level 10 force field. (DS9: "The Jem'Hadar"; TNG: "I Borg"; VOY: "Hope and Fear")

Force fields could be activated from various locations. On Starfleet starships there were emitter points at almost every junction along every corridor. The computer could be programmed to run a series of force field activations and deactivations within the ship, effectively creating a protected corridor which could follow a person. Commander Data used this technique with great control when he commandeered the USS Enterprise-D on stardate 44085.7. He also demonstrated another technique involving instructing the computer to implement a scan series of force field activations, initiated by his movements along a short distance of corridor, thus forcing the security team to back away from him. (TNG: "Brothers")

Soran's forcefield, Veridian III

Tolian Soran's large force field active on Veridian III

If part of a humanoid body was caught in a force field while it was activated, the person could suffer second-degree burns on the affected area. (DS9: "Civil Defense")

Tolian Soran's force field on Veridian III generated an output of fifty gigawatts. (Star Trek Generations)

When various security measures left over from the Cardassian occupation came on-line on Deep Space 9, Elim Garak was recognized as a person of sufficient importance by the computer to have the force fields dividing the station drop when he approached. (DS9: "Civil Defense")

If necessary, a transporter platform could be completely enclosed within a force field, to, for example, contain an alien subject or prisoner during transport. (TNG: "The Hunted", "Realm Of Fear"; VOY: "Death Wish", "Demon")

Hole in prison force fields

Selective positioning in effect

Force fields were also capable of selective positioning, allowing the majority of it to cover a secure location, while a smaller portion was deactivated to allow transport of food, drinks, and other items. This method was used when it would be considered dangerous to deactivate the entire force field. (VOY: "Repentance")

Types of force fields

Cadderon force field

Cadderon force field

A cadderon force field

In 2369, Major Kira Nerys created cadderon force fields to arrest the Klaestrons who kidnapped Jadzia Dax and secured the airlock to their starship. Ilon Tandro was able to override the system and deactivate the cadderon force field. (DS9: "Dax")

Containment field

Sovereign Engineering

A warp core containment field

Containment field strength PADD

In the mirror universe, shooting at a containment field can weaken it to the point of collapse in a matter of seconds.

A containment field, also known as a spatial distortion field, was essentially a force field used to prevent the escape of matter or antimatter.

Containment fields were usually raised when cargo bay or shuttlebay doors were opened to keep them pressurized, although the containment field was partially disengaged when a shuttlecraft passed through it. Unfortunately, eighteen engineers from the crew of the USS Yamato were killed when the containment fields in a shuttlebay failed after the ship was infected with an Iconian software transmission. (TNG: "Contagion") A containment field could be manually activated and deactivated should the need arise. (TNG: "Disaster") Containment fields would be used by Starfleet personnel to isolate an area for investigation, such as using a field to isolate a transporter room pad to beam aboard a sample of an object. (VOY: "Death Wish")

Containment fields could also be used to reinforce antimatter containment, although they could not prevent an impending warp core breach. Lieutenant Commander Data raised a level 3 containment field around the warp core of the Enterprise-D in 2369 when the ship was facing destruction by a core breach. (TNG: "Timescape") By 2379, it was a standard procedure on the USS Enterprise-E for the warp core to be reinforced by a high-level force field before engaging in battle. (Star Trek Nemesis)

In an alternate timeline Miles O'Brien tried to create a sort of a containment field in sickbay to retain Benjamin Sisko on the station. He was unable to and Sisko went into the temporal displacement again. (DS9: "The Visitor")

Structural integrity and emergency force fields

Containment field

An emergency force field

Jadzia Dax walks across force field

Jadzia Dax walks across an emergency force field

The structural integrity of a starbase, starship, or shuttlecraft could be enhanced by force fields. This way the hull could absorb more mechanical stress.

In the event of an outer hull breach, emergency force fields were automatically deployed to protect the damaged part from the influences of space; at the same time they prevented decompression of the entire deck by keeping the atmosphere in. During critical situations, such as ship-to-ship battles, if the main defensive force field was ruptured and a section of the ship was destroyed, it took longer for the computer to re-establish the structural integrity field than usual because of the large energy demands already placed on the vessel. In this short space of time, sections of a vessel could indeed be exposed to the vacuum of space. Captain Kirk was lost to the vacuum of space in this way, in 2293, when the USS Enterprise-B was struck by the Nexus energy ribbon. (Star Trek Generations)

A lieutenant aboard the Enterprise-E was blown out into space in 2379 before an emergency force field could be activated when the bridge front wall and viewscreen were destroyed by the Reman warbird Scimitar. (Star Trek Nemesis) A similar incident happened during the "Year of Hell" when an alien ship was disabled by the Krenim timeship's conventional weapons, and collided with the almost-already-crippled USS Voyager's bridge front/viewscreen and portions of her decks. Fortunately, Captain Janeway was not blown out into space, due to the quick activation of the emergency atmospheric force fields. (VOY: "Year of Hell, Part II")

A plasma leak caused by an explosion on the USS Defiant was covered by a level 8 force field, which Jadzia Dax then walked across in order to tend to Dr. Lenara Kahn. (DS9: "Rejoined")

On stardate 49263.5, the USS Defiant, under the command of Captain Benjamin Sisko, descended into the atmosphere of a Class J gas giant with 10,000 kilometer per hour wind speeds. The emergency force field that was erected to save the ship from decompression due to a hull breach was not able to withstand the pressure for more than a few minutes. (DS9: "Starship Down")

Defensive shielding

Voyager shields

Defensive force field shielding

Starbases, starships, shuttlecraft, and even advanced weaponry were often equipped with external force field emitters, which, when activated, produced a "bubble" around the generating object, known as defensive shields. (VOY: "Dreadnought", "Warhead") These shields were variable, and could even be extended to encompass a nearby vessel or object. (TNG: "The Defector") Defensive force fields could be penetrated in two ways. The most conventional method involved firing energy weapons at the shielded object, which weakened the field. The other method was achieved by matching the frequency of the shield to the weapon used. (Star Trek Generations; VOY: "Equinox, Part II") Chroniton torpedoes could not be stopped by normal shielding but required modifications to enable temporal shielding. (VOY: "Year of Hell")

Security screen

A security screen (also referred to as a security cover or security force field) was a type of force field employed by the Federation that surrounded the Tantalus Penal Colony. In addition to standard force field features, this security screen was also capable of blocking ship-to-shore communications, preventing contact between the colony, which was situated on planet Tantalus V, and nearby spacecraft. The security screen could be deactivated with a control that was in the office of the colony's director. Furthermore, the words "security screen" were visible on a wall of the colony's main power chamber, from where the force field could also be turned off.

These words were instead scripted to read "force field".

While Captain James T. Kirk was visiting Tantalus colony in 2266, the security screen blocked contact between a communicator he had with him and the USS Enterprise, which was orbiting the planet. After Doctor Tristan Adams (the colony's director at that time) informed Kirk that the security screen was in effect, Adams temporarily turned off the force field, permitting Kirk to contact the Enterprise.

Later, shortly after Spock beamed into the colony, he deactivated the security screen from the main power chamber. He then contacted the Enterprise, with a communicator of his own, to report that the security screen had been eliminated. (TOS: "Dagger of the Mind")

Other applications

Federation applications

EMH (Enterprise-E)

The EMH Mark I

On holodecks, force fields were used to give objects substance so people could manipulate them like in real life. These force fields had no substance outside the holodeck. They could be configured to either allow passage of "real" matter, or appear solid.

In sickbay, a force field could be used to separate a patient from the rest of the crew when a contagious disease was diagnosed or when a patient needed a specific environment to stay alive. (TNG: "Brothers"; VOY: "Demon", "Threshold")

The Emergency Medical Hologram and other variants (Emergency Command Hologram and the slave Mark I) used force fields to mimic solidity and to allow the manipulation of tools, manual computer access, and for social interaction.

Force fields were used to contain prisoners inside the holding cells of various races, including Humans, Klingons, and Cardassians. Cardassian technology was able to create a tubular force field from the ceiling to the floor in order to encompass an intruder; however, during first contact with the Dominion, Jem'Hadar such as Talak'talan could walk right through them. The Federation had adapted similar technology by 2366, and it was in use on the bridge of the Enterprise-D as well. (DS9: "The Jem'Hadar"; TNG: "Allegiance")

Most Federation penal colonies had force fields to prevent escape. Examples included the Tantalus Colony (where it was known as a security screen) and the Elba II asylum. (TOS: "Dagger of the Mind", "Whom Gods Destroy")

During emergencies in a Starfleet holodeck, a holographic force field could be created during a simulation. (VOY: "Twisted")

Captain Kirk attempted to use a force field to confine Charles Evans to quarters, in 2266. Once the force field was rigged to the room's door and Evans entered his quarters, the force field was activated by Spock. When Evans then walked to the door, he was thrown backwards, onto the deck, by the force field. However, it was subsequently made to vanish, along with the bulkhead containing it, by Evans, who thereby managed to easily escape. (TOS: "Charlie X")

In the final draft script of "Charlie X", contact with this force field was described as producing "blue sparks of energy" that "instantly outline his body, [and] fling him back into the room." However, no such blue sparks are shown in the final version of the episode, despite collision with the force field clearly throwing Evans back. Also, in scripted but ultimately unused dialogue, it was established that preparing the force field took a minimum of seventy-two hours, that the force field was on deck five, and that setting it up made use of the ship's lab circuitry (all of which, according to the script, ran through the main corridor on deck five).

In 2369, Major Kira Nerys used a force field to prevent Chief Miles O'Brien and Commander Benjamin Sisko from beaming onto the Valerian transport. (DS9: "Dramatis Personae")

The same year, the Bajoran engineer Neela created the program ANA, which granted her access through the security fields on Deep Space 9 after she attempted to assassinate Vedek Bareil Antos. O'Brien found this computer program in a security field subsystem during maintenance work. (DS9: "In the Hands of the Prophets")

In 2372, Admiral Leyton told Federation President Jaresh-Inyo that Starfleet Security had been stockpiling personal force fields on Earth in case of a planet-wide emergency. (DS9: "Homefront")

By 2373, a holo-projection system had been installed on the bridge of the USS Defiant, linked up to the communications system. In this way, a person could 'appear' and speak to others. However, this form of holoprojection had no cohesion, and so people could not interact directly with the hologram. (DS9: "For the Uniform") Holoprojectors of this type were also seen in the captain's office adjacent to Ops aboard space station Deep Space 9. (DS9: "Doctor Bashir, I Presume")

Spacehatch force field

A force field closing a hatch

Jean-Luc Picard demonstrated to Lily Sloane a force field closing a hatch to space aboard the USS Enterprise-E when Lily spotted no glass. (Star Trek: First Contact)

During the late 2260s and early 2270s, a device known as a life support belt was used on board Starfleet vessels. This was a type of personal force field that supplied the wearer with the appropriate atmosphere and protected them from the vacuum of space. (TAS: "Beyond the Farthest Star", "The Slaver Weapon") This type of technology has only been seen in one other application. In 2369, Captain Jean-Luc Picard, Commander Data, Deanna Troi, and Geordi La Forge used subspace isolation fields, projected from modified emergency transporter armbands, that enveloped each of them in their own pocket of subspace. This isolated them from the effects of the temporal fragment that affected the Enterprise-D. This is an example of a "skin-tight" force field, rather than the conventional bubble geometry. (TNG: "Timescape")

Non-Federation applications

Quark Sisko and Eris

Quark, Sisko, and Eris inside a Dominion force field

Paris cannot stop 7 of 9

Seven of Nine protected by her personal shield

Shield Modulation

A Borg force field could be bypassed by remodulating a personal bio-dampener

On the Akaali homeworld in 2151, Captain Jonathan Archer and Commander Charles Tucker III, while secretly watched by Riaan, encountered a Malurian force field covering a wooden door. When touched, the force field flashed with blue light. Tucker reported that the force field was "some kind of magnetic barrier", and he was about to try to disable it when Riaan intervened. The force field was operated via remote control, and once Archer obtained the device from a Malurian, he deactivated the force field. (ENT: "Civilization")

In 2154, Enterprise encountered an Illyrian ship in the vicinity of the Azati Prime system in the Delphic Expanse. This small ship had a force field surrounding its warp coil, which prevented Commander Tucker from removing it easily. (ENT: "Damage")

In 2267, Apollo, from Pollux IV, used advanced force field technologies to create a gigantic hand to hold the Enterprise in space. This force field could be penetrated by M-rays at carefully calculated frequencies. (TOS: "Who Mourns for Adonais?")

In 2346, the Khitomer colony had a force field to help protect itself from attacks. The Khitomer Massacre could have been averted if the Klingon traitor Ja'rod had not given the Romulans the codes to the force field surrounding the colony. (TNG: "Sins of The Father")

In 2364, the entity known as Q used an immensely powerful force field to block the Enterprise's passage. (TNG: "Hide And Q")

Also in 2364, the Enterprise-D rediscovered the planet Aldea. The Aldeans hid their planet behind a very powerful planet-wide cloak and a defensive shield. (TNG: "When The Bough Breaks")

In the same year, the crew of the Enterprise-D encountered the Echo Papa 607 weapon on Minos. One of the weapon's special features was the ability to encase a target in a bubble force field. (TNG: "The Arsenal of Freedom")

In 2367, Captain Picard, Ensign Wesley Crusher, and a civilian shuttle captain, Dirgo, discovered a fountain of water surrounded by a force field on Lambda Paz. (TNG: "Final Mission")

The storage lockers in the assay office aboard Deep Space 9 were secured by individual force fields. (DS9: "Q-Less")

Dr. Tolian Soran used a high-power force field (rated in gigawatts) to protect himself and his star-destroying weapon from Captain Picard in 2371. (Star Trek Generations)

Borg force field, 2153

Borg force fields protecting the drones

The Borg utilized personal defensive force fields. The force field was sufficient to allow survival in space without a spacesuit. When in combat, Borg drones could be killed by phasers but only for the first several shots. The phaser became ineffective if used at the same setting after multiple shots. The phaser's effectiveness could be extended though by adding a frequency modulation chip, but drones would eventually adapt to this as well. (TNG: "Q Who", "The Best of Both Worlds", "The Best of Both Worlds, Part II"; VOY: "Drone") While Borg force fields were formidable against directed energy, they were capable of being bypassed by blunt force, kinetic energy. Projectile weapons were notoriously efficient against their shields. (citation needededit)

The Cardassians utilized force fields in their labor camps to maintain the populace. The Hutet labor camp utilized such force fields. (DS9: "The Homecoming")

Contact with Dominion force fields is always lethal and they are even harder to see than those of the Federation, which are visible to the careful eye. Captain Sisko and Quark were held in a Dominion force field when they were kidnapped while on a camping trip with Jake and Nog. A similar force field was used to hold Chief O'Brien and Doctor Bashir hostage when they were taken prisoner by a rogue group of Jem'Hadar. (DS9: "The Jem'Hadar", "Hippocratic Oath")

The Hur'q used a force field to protect the Hur'q Central Museum from looters. A Vulcan mining team could not penetrate the field. However, in 2372, Kor, Jadzia Dax, and Worf were able to bypass the force field by reversing the polarity on the field destabilizers.

The Vidiians made extensive use of force fields to conceal their underground bases from intruders, making entrances appear like solid rock, even to tricorders. This was described as a cloaking effect. Upon first encountering this technology in 2371, the USS Voyager found that phaser fire could breach them. However, when they encountered such fields a second time later that year, they found them to have been adapted to repulse phaser fire. (VOY: "Phage", "Faces")

When the Cardassian Silaran Prin held Kira Nerys prisoner for a brief time, he enclosed her in a personal force field of sorts that prevented her from moving. (DS9: "The Darkness and the Light")

By 2373, the Breen had developed a hand-held weapon, the CRM 114, which could penetrate force fields of up to 4.6 gigajoules. (DS9: "Business as Usual")

Appendices

Appearances and references

The first appearance of a force field was in the TOS episode "Charlie X".

See also

External links

This is a featured article. At the time it was featured (June 2005), it was considered one of the best examples of the Memory Alpha community's work. This article was featured more than five years ago though, and its status should be reviewed. You can use the links below to see how the article has changed since it was last featured.
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