Disclosed is an atomic interferometer including a source of atoms, a laser source and a magnetic field generating device, a polarizer, a system for adjusting a detuning between two optical frequencies of the incident laser beam, a two-dimensional diffraction grating arranged in such a way as to receive the incident laser beam and to form by diffraction at least three diffracted beams, a controller configured to select a combination of an optical frequency detuning, a polarization state and a magnetic field, the combination being adapted to select a first pair of laser beams among the pairs of beams formed from the incident laser beam and the diffracted beams, the pair of laser beams being applied in such a way as to interact with the cloud of atoms by multi-photon transitions and to detect an acceleration of the cloud of atoms along a measurement direction.

The present application relates to an atom interferometry method. The atom interferometry method releases atoms from an atom source into an interferometer region. Pulses of light are then directed at the atoms to place the atoms in different quantum states and to recombine the quantum states such that the recombined quantum states interfere with each other when the quantum states are overlapped spatially. The recombined quantum states creates a spatial fringe pattern with a phase. The spatial fringe pattern and the phase of the spatial fringe pattern are detected when the quantum states are overlapped spatially. The overlapped spatial fringe pattern is then used to measure physical quantities such as local gravity, the gravitational constant, the fine structure constant, the ratio of Planck's constant to the atomic mass, rotation of the atom interferometer, acceleration of the atom interferometer, and the like.

A multi-axis MEMS gyroscope includes a micromechanical detection structure having a substrate, a driving-mass arrangement, a driven-mass arrangement with a central window, and a sensing-mass arrangement which undergoes sensing movements in the presence of angular velocities about a first horizontal axis and a second horizontal axis. A sensing-electrode arrangement is fixed with respect to the substrate and is set underneath the sensing-mass arrangement. An anchorage assembly is set within the central window for constraining the driven-mass arrangement to the substrate at anchorage elements. The anchorage assembly includes a rigid structure suspended above the substrate that is elastically coupled to the driven mass by elastic connection elements at a central portion, and is coupled to the anchorage elements by elastic decoupling elements at end portions thereof.

Embodiments relate to a sensor system configured to detect physical rotation, entire or relative, of one or more objects and/or their environment and/or proximity of a magnetic field, by measuring the degree of localization of a medium trapped in a ring-shaped artificial lattice. The lattice structure can be configured to comprise of lattice sites distributed with a lattice period around an azimuth of a closed ring. The site depths of the plurality of lattice sites can be configured to be modulated with a modulation period different from the lattice period to affect the onsite energies of each lattice site and the eigenstates of the system. Physical rotation of the sensor and/or the proximity of magnetic field will alter the localization properties so as to cause the degree of localization of the medium to change (e.g., the medium becomes more confined in space or more spread out in space).

Embodiments relate to a sensor system configured to detect physical rotation, entire or relative, of one or more objects and/or their environment and/or proximity of a magnetic field, by measuring the degree of localization of a medium trapped in a ring-shaped artificial lattice. The lattice structure can be configured to comprise of lattice sites distributed with a lattice period around an azimuth of a closed ring. The site depths of the plurality of lattice sites can be configured to be modulated with a modulation period different from the lattice period to affect the onsite energies of each lattice site and the eigenstates of the system. Physical rotation of the sensor and/or the proximity of magnetic field will alter the localization properties so as to cause the degree of localization of the medium to change (e.g., the medium becomes more confined in space or more spread out in space).

In an example, an optical gimbal is described, the optical gimbal comprising: a pulse generator configured to generate at least two coherent beam splitting pulses; a first optical beam director configured to tilt the vector of the beam splitting pulses by an angle θ; an atom source configured to allow the beam splitting pulses to manipulate trapped atoms within the atom source; a processor configured to receive the angle θ, and control the pulse generator and the beam director; a detector coupled to the atom source configured to measure a final population of the atoms in different states.

In an example, an optical gimbal is described, the optical gimbal comprising: a pulse generator configured to generate at least two coherent beam splitting pulses; a first optical beam director configured to tilt the vector of the beam splitting pulses by an angle θ; an atom source configured to allow the beam splitting pulses to manipulate trapped atoms within the atom source; a processor configured to receive the angle θ, and control the pulse generator and the beam director; a detector coupled to the atom source configured to measure a final population of the atoms in different states.

The present application relates to an atom interferometry method. The atom interferometry method releases atoms from an atom source into an interferometer region. Pulses of light are then directed at the atoms to place the atoms in different quantum states and to recombine the quantum states such that the recombined quantum states interfere with each other when the quantum states are overlapped spatially. The recombined quantum states creates a spatial fringe pattern with a phase. The spatial fringe pattern and the phase of the spatial fringe pattern are detected when the quantum states are overlapped spatially. The overlapped spatial fringe pattern is then used to measure physical quantities such as local gravity, the gravitational constant, the fine structure constant, the ratio of Planck's constant to the atomic mass, rotation of the atom interferometer, acceleration of the atom interferometer, and the like.

Disclosed is a hybrid inertial measurement system including a cold atom interferometric inertial sensor having a laser source generating a sequence of laser pulses towards a cold atom burst and a conventional inertial sensor attached to the inertial reference frame of the interferometric inertial sensor. The hybrid system includes a signal processing system suitable for receiving an inertial measurement signal from the conventional inertial sensor and for generating in real time a non-linear frequency modulation signal, the feedback loop electronic system being configured to modulate in real time the central optical frequency of the laser according to the modulation signal, such that the cold atom interferometric inertial sensor generates a first hybrid inertial measurement signal by atomic interferometry corrected for the relative movements of the inertial reference frame.

Disclosed is a hybrid inertial measurement system including a cold atom interferometric inertial sensor having a laser source generating a sequence of laser pulses towards a cold atom burst and a conventional inertial sensor attached to the inertial reference frame of the interferometric inertial sensor. The hybrid system includes a signal processing system suitable for receiving an inertial measurement signal from the conventional inertial sensor and for generating in real time a non-linear frequency modulation signal, the feedback loop electronic system being configured to modulate in real time the central optical frequency of the laser according to the modulation signal, such that the cold atom interferometric inertial sensor generates a first hybrid inertial measurement signal by atomic interferometry corrected for the relative movements of the inertial reference frame.