Transmissive resonator optic gyro based on silica waveguide ring resonator

Area of Science:

• Photonics and Optical Engineering
• Inertial Sensing Technologies
• Integrated Optics

Background:

• Optical gyroscopes are crucial for navigation and control systems.
• Achieving long-term bias stability in optical gyros remains a significant challenge.
• Silica waveguide ring resonators offer potential for high-performance optical gyro designs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To report a transmissive resonator optic gyro (TROG) utilizing a silica waveguide ring resonator.
• To enhance the long-term bias stability of optical gyros.
• To analyze factors affecting gyro performance, including polarization dependence and phase modulator effects.

Main Methods:

• Modeling and simulation of a transmissive resonator for optical gyro applications.
• Design, fabrication, and testing of a silica waveguide ring resonator.
• Development and evaluation of a TROG prototype incorporating the fabricated resonator.
• Analysis of polarization effects and phase modulator influences on gyro output.

Main Results:

• Demonstrated a bias stability of 0.22°/s over a one-hour test with a 10s integration time.
• Allan variance analysis of 10000s test data revealed no obvious drift.
• The TROG prototype exhibits improved long-term drift characteristics.

Conclusions:

• The developed silica waveguide ring resonator is effective for improving TROG performance.
• The TROG prototype shows excellent long-term bias stability and minimal drift.
• This work contributes to the advancement of high-stability optical gyroscope technology.