Rydberg atom-based vector and polarization sensor
AssigneeThe MITRE Corporation
InventorsBonnie Lee Marlow, Charles Thomas Fancher
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An electric field sensor may include an atomic vapor cell and a plurality of lasers configured to excite atoms in the vapor cell from a low-energy state to a high-energy state. The sensor may be configured to split signals from the plurality of lasers into multiple polarized signals. The polarized signals may be transmitted through the atomic vapor cell. A subset of the polarized signals may be received by photodetectors after the subset exits the vapor cell. Based on signals from the photodetectors, the electric field sensor may determine an angle of arrival and polarization information about an electric field that is incident upon the atomic vapor cell.
Claims20
An electric field sensor comprising:
- an atomic vapor cell configured to contain at least one atom;
- a first laser to generate a first laser signal configured to excite the at least one atom in the atomic vapor cell from a first energy state to a second energy state higher than the first energy state;
- a second laser to generate a second laser signal configured to excite the at least one atom in the atomic vapor cell from the second energy state to a third energy state higher than the second energy state;
- a first beam displacer configured to receive the first laser signal from the first laser and split the first laser signal into a plurality of first polarized signals, and wherein the first beam displacer is optically connected to the atomic vapor cell for transmitting the plurality of first polarized signals to multiple excitation regions of the atomic vapor cell;
- a second beam displacer configured to receive the second laser signal from the second laser and split the second laser signal into a plurality of second polarized signals, wherein the second beam displacer is optically connected to the atomic vapor cell for transmitting the plurality of second polarized signals to the multiple excitation regions of the atomic vapor cell, wherein the plurality of first polarized signals and the plurality of second polarized signals counter propagate;
- at least one photodetector to receive the plurality of first polarized signals that exit the atomic vapor cell;
- a memory;
- and
- one or more processors, wherein the memory stores one or more programs that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors, when an electric field is incident upon the atomic vapor cell, to determine, based on the plurality of first polarized signals, at least one characteristic associated with the electric field, the at least one characteristic comprising an angle of arrival of the electric field or polarization information associated with the electric field.
A method for determining at least one characteristic associated with an electric field comprising, at a computing system:
- receiving, from at least one photodetector, at least one signal associated with response of at least one atom of an atomic vapor cell to an incident electric field, wherein the at least one signal is generated by the at least one photodetector in response to the at least one photodetector receiving a plurality of first polarized signals that exit the atomic vapor cell, wherein the plurality of first polarized signals counter propagate with a plurality of second polarized signals in the atomic vapor cell;
- and
- determining, based on the at least one signal received from the at least one photodetector, at least one characteristic associated with the incident electric field, wherein the at least one characteristic comprises an angle of arrival of the electric field or polarization information associated with the electric field.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.