[5] It has a range of up to 10 km (6.2 mi), complementing the Iron Dome system which was designed to intercept missiles launched from a greater distance.

[10] While official information is not available, a 2020 report said that Iron Beam was thought to have a maximum effective range of up to 7 km, and could destroy missiles, UAVs (drones), and mortar shells around four seconds after the twin high-energy fiber-optic lasers make contact with their target.

[11] In 2023, energy levels could reach 100 kW or more and the system could focus a beam to the diameter of a coin at a distance of 10 km (6.2 mi).

[14] Energy weapons may be more effective against slower-flying drones, with relatively delicate rotors, control flaps, and guidance systems vulnerable to shorter laser attack, than fast rockets.

[14] As of 2016[update], the Iron Beam had been funded mainly by the Israeli Ministry of Defense (MoD), with Rafael pursuing increasing the range of the system and partnering with other companies to further develop the prototype.

[10][15] In December 2022, Rafael and Lockheed Martin announced a joint effort to develop a laser defense system based on the Iron Beam project.

The aim is to produce a system made up of a pair of solid-state lasers that, when combined, could boost power up to 300 kW, and to use more than one beam to simultaneously attack multiple targets.

[21] An Iron Beam battery is composed of an air defense radar, a command and control (C2) unit, and two HEL (high-energy laser) systems.

It was intended to be mobile[22] and to be able to be used standalone,[7] but was later rendered non-mobile to address weight and power availability concerns and integrated into Iron Dome to reduce complexity.

The naval version maintains the same turret external dimensions and can be configured to be integrated onto ship superstructures or in containerized modules to be embarked when needed.

[28][29] In October 2023, the Ministry of Defense and Rafael announced that they would deploy Iron Beam to the southern border with the Gaza Strip to test it with rocket barrages fired by Hamas during 2023 Israel–Hamas war.