Stand-alone multi-axis compact portable quantum accelerometer

OUSD (R&E) MODERNIZATION PRIORITY: Quantum Science TECHNOLOGY AREA(S): Sensors, Electronics and Electronic Warfare OBJECTIVE: Build a compact portable 3-axis quantum-based accelerometer and demonstrate on a moving platform. DESCRIPTION: A significant portion of quantum IMU development has focused on single-axis inertial sensors. Of these, the majority have been gyroscopes and gravimeters instead of full-scale accelerometers. Although some approaches measure both rotation and acceleration simultaneously, the resulting measurements are of limited use to practical systems. The DoD seeks the development of a stand-alone multi-axis quantum accelerometer that can simultaneously offer competitive sensitivity, bandwidth, full-scale range, bias error, and scale factor performance as compared to conventional accelerometers. A realistic pathway must be established towards a portable version that can be flown on an aerial vehicle in a GPS-denied environment. The accelerometer can be purely quantum or a hybrid combination of classical and quantum sensors. The pathway to demonstration will be required, and development of optical and electronic systems must have a clear and direct purpose towards meeting that goal. PHASE I: Demonstration of a compact 3-axis quantum-based accelerometer on a moving platform that promises pathway towards miniaturization which will be undertaken in Phase II. PHASE II: Demonstration of a 3-axis quantum-based accelerometer on a DoD-provided aerial platform with the following minimum characteristics: Full Acceleration Vector Output Rate >100 Hz White Noise <1 10 ^(-5) g/ Hz Bias Stability <5 10 ^(-6) g Scale Factor Stability <10 ppm Full-Scale Range > 10 g Volume (including all electronics and optical systems) <0.3 m^3 PHASE III DUAL USE APPLICATIONS: Military applications for a 3-axis quantum-based accelerometer include inertial navigation of ships, spacecraft, aircraft, and undersea/underground vehicles that operate in GPS-degraded environments. Further commercial applications include gravity mapping, natural resource exploration, earthquake monitoring, and detection of underground tunnels. REFERENCES: P Cheiney, et al., Navigation-Compatible Hybrid Quantum Accelerometer Using a Kalman Filter. Phys. Rev. Applied 10, 034030. 17 September 2018. Phys. Rev. Applied 10, 034030 (2018) - Navigation-Compatible Hybrid Quantum Accelerometer Using a Kalman Filter (aps.org). X Wu, et al., Multiaxis atom interferometry with a single-diode laser and a pyramidal magneto-optical trap. Optica 4, 12. 20 December 2017. OSA | Multiaxis atom interferometry with a single-diode laser and a pyramidal magneto-optical trap (osapublishing.org). X Wang, et al., Enhancing Inertial Navigation Performance via Fusion of Classical and Quantum Accelerometers. ArXiv 2103.09378. 17 March 2021. [2103.09378] Enhancing Inertial Navigation Performance via Fusion of Classical and Quantum Accelerometers (arxiv.org). B Barrett, et al. Inertial quantum sensors using light and matter. Physica Scripta 91, 5. 13 April 2016. Inertial quantum sensors using light and matter IOPscience. R Geiger, et al., Detecting inertial effects with airborne matter-wave interferometry. Nature Communications 2, 474. 20 September 2011. Detecting inertial effects with airborne matter-wave interferometry | Nature Communications. KEYWORDS: Quantum; Accelerometer; Inertial Navigation; Atom; Sensor