University of Auckland, NIST, and UMD Demonstrate Octave
An international research team has developed a chip-integrated optical frequency comb that uses a new self-aligned architecture to improve stability. This breakthrough could enable more precise quantum sensing, navigation, and portable atomic clocks.
Why it matters
This technology provides a scalable hardware foundation for next-generation precision timing and navigation systems that do not rely on GPS.
Share Copy link Concept of self-aligned PDCS microcomb generation with octave-separated lasers. In a study published in Nature , an international research collaboration led by the University of Auckland , the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) , the University of Maryland (UMD) , and UC Santa Barbara has demonstrated a chip-integrated optical frequency comb that overcomes long-standing stability and control limits in microcomb metrology. By inverting traditional frequency comb architectures, the team generated a self-aligned, octave-spanning microcomb operating on a single foundry-fabricated photonic chip, establishing a scalable hardware foundation for deployable optical atomic clocks, GPS-denied quantum navigation, and precision quantum sensing.
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