Quantum Sensing is Drawing Closer, Promising Greater Accuracy - Could Soon make GPS-Free Navigation a Reality

Peel apart a smartphone, two way radio, fitness tracker or virtual reality headset, and inside you’ll find a tiny motion sensor tracking its position and movement. Bigger, more expensive versions of the same technology, about the size of a grapefruit and a thousand times more accurate, help navigate ships, airplanes and other vehicles with GPS assistance.

Now, scientists are attempting to make a motion sensor so precise it could minimize the reliance on global positioning satellites. Until recently, such a sensor — a thousand times more sensitive than today’s navigation-grade devices — would have filled a moving truck. But advancements are dramatically shrinking the size and cost of this technology.

For the first time, researchers from Sandia National Laboratories have used silicon photonic microchip components to perform a quantum sensing technique called atom interferometry, an ultra-precise way of measuring acceleration. It is the latest milestone toward developing a kind of quantum compass for navigation when GPS signals are unavailable.

 
The team published its findings and introduced a new high-performance silicon photonic modulator — a device that controls light on a microchip — as the cover story in the journal Science Advances. The research was supported by Sandia’s Laboratory Directed Research and Development program. It took place, in part, at the National Security Photonics Center, a collaborative research center developing integrated photonics solutions for complex problems in the national security sector.

GPS-free navigation a matter of national security

“Accurate navigation becomes a challenge in real-world scenarios when GPS signals are unavailable,” said Sandia scientist Jongmin Lee.

In a war zone, these challenges pose national security risks, as electronic warfare units can jam or spoof satellite signals to disrupt troop movements and operations. Quantum sensing offers a solution.

“By harnessing the principles of quantum mechanics, these advanced sensors provide unparalleled accuracy in measuring acceleration and angular velocity, enabling precise navigation even in GPS-denied areas,” Lee said.