NASA Engineering and Safety Center has convened an independent external panel, comprising of Quantum Sensing Experts from Government, DoD, academia, and Federally funded Research and Development Center to conduct an independent technical assessment of the agency's capabilities in Quantum Sensing to understand NASA's internal needs and competencies related to Quantum Sensing and compare agency capabilities with those available externally including industry, academia, and other government agencies. The outcomes of the assessment will help the agency in establishing appropriate strategies and investments to develop and maintain the state-of-the-art sensing competence and capabilities required to meet the agency’s future needs.
NASA Engineering and Safety Center has convened an independent external panel, comprising of Quantum Sensing Experts from Government, DoD, academia, and Federally funded Research and Development Center to conduct an independent technical assessment of the agency's capabilities in Quantum Sensing to understand NASA's internal needs and competencies related to Quantum Sensing and compare agency capabilities with those available externally including industry, academia, and other government agencies. The outcomes of the assessment will help the agency in establishing appropriate strategies and investments to develop and maintain the state-of-the-art sensing competence and capabilities required to meet the agency’s future needs.
Sensors based on quantum mechanical properties of light and matter offer unique capabilities and performance sometimes difficult to achieve using classical approaches. NASA Engineering and Safety Center has convened an independent external panel, comprised of Quantum Sensing Experts from the Government, DoD, academia, and Federally funded Research and Development Centers to conduct an independent technical assessment of the agency's capabilities in Quantum Sensing to understand NASA's internal needs and competencies related to Quantum Sensing and compare agency capabilities with those available externally including industry, academia, and other government agencies. This assesses focused on suitability of quantum sensing for current and future NASA needs. Measurement and sensing needs across NASA were reviewed as a driver for the possible incorporation of existing quantum sensors into the NASA portfolio and the development of next-generation quantum sensors. This presentation will describe a set of findings and recommendations to guide future investment and activity at NASA in this important and growing technology area.
The Space Science and Technology Partnership Forum (S&T Forum), comprised of an interagency team from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the National Reconnaissance Office, and the United States Space Force, presents findings and recommendations from a study on the state of quantum sensors for space applications, enabling component technologies, facilities, and developers across government, industry, and academia. The following five areas of quantum sensing technology (listed in alphabetical order) were identified as being of near-term interest to all three S&T Forum agencies: atomic clocks, atom interferometers, quantum magnetometers, Rydberg sensors, and single photon detectors. This paper focuses on two recommendations: 1) increased collaboration between the S&T Forum, industry, and academia on the development of enabling components for the five quantum sensing technology areas, and 2) challenges and future opportunities to take quantum sensors from the laboratory to space. Through this study, the S&T Forum found a diverse and broad community of quantum sensing developers in the United States that are leading efforts in research, testing, manufacturing, and qualification of quantum sensors and their enabling component technologies. There are common needs across quantum sensing technology areas. To address the common needs, the S&T Forum agencies are encouraged to utilize existing models and mechanisms to enable co-development of enabling component technologies and to explore new avenues for engagement with the quantum sensing community.
In response to numerous programs seeking to advance quantum education and workforce development in the United States, experts from academia, industry, government, and professional societies convened for a National Science Foundation-sponsored workshop in February 2024 to explore the benefits and challenges of establishing a national center for quantum education. Broadly, such a center would foster collaboration and build the infrastructure required to develop a diverse and quantum-ready workforce. The workshop discussions focused on how a center could uniquely address gaps in public, K-12, and undergraduate quantum information science and engineering (QISE) education. Specifically, the community identified activities that, through a center, could lead to an increase in student awareness of quantum careers, boost the number of educators trained in quantum-related subjects, strengthen pathways into quantum careers, enhance the understanding of the US quantum workforce, and elevate public engagement with QISE. Core proposed activities for the center include professional development for educators, coordinated curriculum development and curation, expanded access to educational laboratory equipment, robust evaluation and assessment practices, network building, and enhanced public engagement with quantum science.
The various branches of the U.S. military have systematically laid out related projects in quantum technology, accelerating the application of quantum technology in the field of defense. This article analyzes the development trend of quantum technology from four perspectives: defense, funding, industry, and research output. Taking the U.S. military as the main object, based on the Department of Defense’s 2024 fiscal year defense technology budget, it analyzes the project layout of U.S. Army, Navy, Air Force and Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency in the field of quantum technology; it analyzes the application prospects of quantum technology in defense, and elaborates on the high-precision detection capabilities of quantum sensing technology, the high-speed information processing capabilities of quantum computing, and the secure confidential communication capabilities of quantum communication.
Quantum sensing has emerged as a promising approach for spaceborne Earth Observation (EO) with the potential to offer higher accuracy, sensitivity and stability than instruments used in EO missions so far. While several quantum sensors have been developed and successfully tested in ground-based experiments, with some of them even available as commercial devices, the identification of their potential applications in space remains a challenge. Nevertheless, there are some promising technologies, including cold-atom interferometers, Rydberg receivers, atomic vapor- and Nitrogen-Vacancy center-based magnetometers, and quantum lidar, that show potential for enhancing EO capabilities. In this presentation, we will discuss the latest developments and challenges in quantum sensing for EO at the European Space Agency (ESA), highlighting the most promising technologies and their potential applications. We will also discuss ongoing efforts at ESA to identify potential applications of these sensors and the roadmap for their deployment. Finally, we will conclude with a discussion of the future prospects for quantum sensing in EO and the wider space exploration domain.