The project is structured around four implementation objectives, from the individual photonic building blocks to the complete navigation system.
Technology platform
Development of a silicon photonics platform based on standard processes available at commercial silicon photonics foundries, comprising the core components: ultra-low-loss waveguides, high-linearity modulators, low-noise Si/Ge photodiodes and high Q-factor resonators.
Photonic inertial unit (IMU)
Design and fabrication of photonic chips to demonstrate optomechanical accelerometers, in which the displacement of a mechanical microstructure is read optically, and interferometric optical gyroscopes, which measure angular velocity by interferometry.
Time reference
Design and fabrication of photonic chips to demonstrate an atomic clock in photonic technology, intended for integration into a next-generation GNSS receiver as a high-stability time reference.
Mini-GNSS/INS system
Development of the GNSS/INS unit subsystems, demonstrating the electronic boards for power control and distribution and for real-time data processing on an FPGA (field-programmable gate array), a reconfigurable digital integrated circuit.