From photon momentum transfer to acceleration sensing

TL;DR

This paper introduces a dual-beam optical levitation accelerometer capable of dynamic testing, achieving high sensitivity and range, thus advancing practical acceleration sensing applications in navigation, driving, and automation.

Contribution

The work demonstrates the first dynamic testing of an optical levitation accelerometer with significant sensitivity and range improvements for real-world applications.

Findings

Achieved 0.1 μg sensitivity in acceleration measurement.

Demonstrated a measurement range of 1g.

First dynamic testing of optical levitation accelerometers.

Abstract

As a typical application of photon momentum transfer, optical levitation systems are known for their ideal isolation from mechanical dissipation and thermal noise. These characters offer extraordinary potential for acceleration precision sensing and have attracted extensive attention in both fundamental and applied physics. Although considerable improvements of optical levitation accelerometers has been reported, the dynamic testing of the sensing performance remains a crucial challenge before the utilization in practical application scenarios. In this work, we present a dual-beam optical levitation accelerometer and demonstrate the test with dynamic inputs for the first time. An acceleration sensing sensitivity of $0.1\mu g$ and a measurement range of $ 1g$ are achieved. These advancements solidify the potential of optical levitation accelerometer for deployment in practical domains, including navigation, intelligent driving, and industrial automation, building a bridge between the laboratory systems and real-world applications.