Invited Speakers

Cold atom inertial sensors have been developed in laboratory settings by several groups around the world and, through their stable scale factor and low base-line drift, have the potential to significantly improve the performance of traditional (classical) sensors applied  to problems such as inertial navigation, mineral exploration, oil well monitoring, aquifer monitoring, carbon sequestration monitoring and studies of Earth Science.  It would seem likely that the most fruitful path in the near future is a sensor fusion architecture where stable quantum sensors augment higher bandwidth classical sensors . This talk will serve as an introduction to the precision measurement of gravity, gravity gradients, and magnetic scalar gradients with ultra cold atoms and a summary of the current state of the art in cold atom inertial sensors. I will described the sensors we are currently developing, discuss the physics and technology that underpins them, and discuss their performance including sensitivity, bandwidth, SWaP, and their prospects for field deployment in a variety of scenarios. 

The DARPA Precise Robust Inertial Guidance for Munitions (PRIGM) program has been running for over 3 years with a focus on developing inertial sensor technologies to enable positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) in GPS-denied environments.  This presentation will provide an overview of the program, the current status, and a glimpse at the outlook for miniature inertial sensors.  Overall, PRIGM comprises two focus areas: development of a navigation-grade inertial measurement unit (NGIMU) based on micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) platforms and basic research of advanced inertial micro sensor (AIMS) technologies for future gun-hard, high-bandwidth, high-dynamic-range, GPS-free navigation.  The PRIGM:NGIMU focus area is developing a MEMS-based, navigation-grade inertial measurement unit (IMU) that has a mechanical/electronic interface compatible with drop-in replacement for existing tactical-grade IMUs on legacy DoD platforms.  PRIGM:AIMS is a basic research program exploring alternative technologies and modalities for inertial sensing, including photonic and MEMS-photonic integration, as well as novel architectures and materials systems. The principal objective of PRIGM:AIMS is to identify promising candidate technologies for further development as high-performance inertial sensors for long-duration missions and deployment in extreme environments.  The bulk of the presentation will focus on the new technology developments within the AIMS effort as a way of providing insight into the future possibility of navigation-grade-plus performance for miniature inertial sensors.

Analog Devices’ (ADI) focus on high performance signal processing with world-class performance has successfully served a wide range of applications, customers and markets. When ADI decided to pursue MEMS in the late 1980’s, this vision was applied to the development of MEMS inertial sensors with the goal of delivering sensor performance leadership.  This presentation will look back at the challenges and successes of this pursuit with regards to ADI’s iMEMS® (integrated Micro Electro Mechanical Systems) inertial sensor technology and manufacturing processes.  The future will also be discussed as more advanced, higher performance MEMS accelerometers and gyroscopes are set to transform an incredibly diverse scope of new applications in an equally diverse list of markets. By combining ~30 years of MEMS experience with 50+ years of signal processing expertise, ADI is well positioned to lead the next wave of high performance MEMS sensor adoption.