Miniature and Low-Cost Magnetometers for Autonomous Navigation in GPS Denied Environment with Highly Improved Vertical Cavity Laser devices

Our goal in this program is to develop highly improved precision autonomous navigation capability in GPS denied environment with ultra-high sensitivity magnetometers using high performance Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Lasers ( VCSELs) at the rubidium and Cs D1 wavelength for the UAVs and other air vehicles. High performance VCSELs are the most critical components in such magnetometers but there are no suppliers of VCSELs with adequate power levels, reliability and other attributes required for this application. The products developed in this SBIR would rectify that situation. We would develop high performance VCSELs with a maximum power levels of 100mW for pumps and 10mW for the probes at those wavelengths of Rb and Cs D1 lines. Other specifications of the lasers will be mode hop free operation, low relative intensity noise, very stable polarization, ultra-narrow linewidth and other desirable features for magnetometers and other atomic sensors applications and our team partner will develop a high performance, low cost, miniature magnetometer using such VCSELs for Army applications.