Patent attributes
A matter-wave gyro with counter-propagating traps uses three-dimensional lattices formed of interference fringes from three pairs of interfering laser beams. Particles, such as neutral atoms, ion, or molecules are cooled to a ground state near absolute zero. The resulting ultra-cold particles are loaded into the lattices. The laser beams used to form the lattices are driven according to functions that cause the lattices to counter-propagate about a closed path (Sagnac loop) N times, where a desired tradeoff between spatial resolution and temporal resolution can be achieved by choosing an appropriate integer value of N. The lattices can be extinguished so that the particles can be imaged to identify an interference pattern. A shift in the interference pattern relative to an interference pattern that would occur with zero angular momentum can be used to measure angular momentum.
