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Microgravity Test Complex for Mobile and Portable Optical Frequency Standards

  • TIME AND FREQUENCY MEASUREMENTS
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Measurement Techniques Aims and scope

Herein, the application of optical quantum standards (quantum sensors) based on cold atoms in satellite navigation is discussed. The advantages of placing quantum sensors based on cold atoms in space are also discussed. It has been established that to improve the accuracy of measurements using quantum sensors, their operation in zero-gravity or microgravity on specific platforms must be studied. The main platforms that provide microgravity conditions are reviewed in this article, and a test platform for falling along a parabolic trajectory in the form of a slide of various shapes with a moving trolley is proposed. Four different slide configurations have been described in detail, with a computer simulation for each of them. A comparative analysis of the characteristics of the slides has been performed, their advantages and disadvantages have been identified, and the most effective configuration has been found. Furthermore, a method for improving microgravity quality is proposed, and it will be considered in the future.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Russian Metrological Institute of Technical Physics and Radio Engineering Measurements, Mendeleevo, Moscow Region, Russia

    A. P. Vyalykh, A. V. Semenko, D. V. Sutyrin, G. S. Belotelov & S. N. Slyusarev

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  1. A. P. Vyalykh
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  2. A. V. Semenko
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  3. D. V. Sutyrin
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  4. G. S. Belotelov
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Correspondence to A. P. Vyalykh.

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Translated from Izmeritel’naya Tekhnika, No. 3, pp. 45–52, March, 2022.

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Vyalykh, A.P., Semenko, A.V., Sutyrin, D.V. et al. Microgravity Test Complex for Mobile and Portable Optical Frequency Standards. Meas Tech 65, 197–205 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11018-022-02069-6

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