Hybrid Inertial sensors – future prospects of inertial sensors based on atom interferometry fused with opto-mechanical accelerometers

Abstract

Positioning currently relies heavily on Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS). \nCombined with classical accelerometers and gyroscopes, precise determination of \norientation and position at any given time become available. However, but the availability \nof GNSS (e.g. GPS) is limited and not guaranteed at all times. \nIn this paper we present an alternative based on atom interferometry using cold atom \nensembles. An inertial sensor based on cold atoms allows, in theory, for nearly drift-free \nmeasurements of inertial forces with accuracies unreached by classical sensors, but the \ntechnology is still locked away in large physics laboratories [Nyman 2006]. \nThis paper introduces a compact device called SECAMP, which is capable of cooling \natoms down to µ-Kelvin. SECAMP has the potential to measure inertial acceleration in \nthree degrees of freedom. In the following, we present the current experimental setup of \nthe apparatus and outline the next steps for the inertial sensor.