Advanced High-g Accelerometers in Small Form Factor for Inertial Measurement Unit Applications

International FemtoScience will develop and demonstrate a new technology to achieve an advanced accelerometer that enhances an Inertial Measurement Unit’s high-g operability. This accelerometer provides smaller, lighter, more robust, less expensive devices, compatible with known production methodologies. To achieve the required performance a novel material (not silicon-based, to achieve the high-g goals) and a novel sensing technology (to achieve the IMU-compatible sensitivity) is proposed. This novel sensing mechanism is relatively insensitive to temperature, radiation and other environmental effects such as shock and vibration while reducing error accumulation as well as improvements in Size, Weight, Power and Cost (SWaP-C). The inertial sensing is performed by the unique utilization of low-cost diamond films, altering the flux of quantum based free electrons from a diamond cold cathode emitter as a direct result of g-force change. Scaling for measurements from the kilo-g to micro-g range is possible to achieve an accelerometer that is superior in performance to existing solid-state technologies. The proposed solution, when integrated, will fit within 2 times smaller packages than the current state of the art IMU packages and while increasing the ruggedness and survivability of accelerometers by a factor of 2 to 3 over current shock and vibration environments. Approved for Public Release | 19-MDA-9932 (21 Feb 19)