Session: 13-03-01: Computational Studies on MEMS and Nanostructures

Paper Number: 149871

149871 - Design and Optimization of a Quantum Graphene Gyroscope 

Today, most personal navigation devices rely on the Global Positioning System (GPS). This system is quite accurate under open sky, but this accuracy can be significantly degraded when satellite signals are blocked by terrain or buildings, or when the receiver is indoors or underground. In everyday situations these issues are mostly a minor inconvenience, but they can become critical in situations such as disaster relief or medical emergencies.

For this reason, there is a need for personal location and navigation systems that do not rely exclusively on GPS signals. Such a system can be constructed with a combination of accelerometers and gyroscopes – by tracking changes in velocity and in orientation, this would provide accurate location information from a known starting point. This system would also ideally be lightweight, compact, robust, low power, and highly accurate, making it practical for personal handheld devices. The goal of our current research is to develop a gyroscope based on graphene that meets all of these requirements.

In this talk, I will present the design and analysis of of graphene gyroscopes that can detect rotation through purely electrical means. This detection is accomplished via the Sagnac effect, which is a quantum mechanical effect where angular rotation induces quantum interference that results in a modulation of current through a ring structure. This is analogous to the Aharonov-Bohm effect in electrically conductive systems, with angular momentum replacing the magnetic field, and can be implemented in both photonic and electronic systems.

The optical Sagnac effect has been used for decades in aerial navigation, but these optical gyroscopes tend to be quite bulky and heavy. This arises from the self-evident fact that light moves at the speed of light, and thus very large optical path lengths are required for the gyroscope to be sufficiently sensitive to rotation. In contrast, electrons in solids move much more slowly, allowing for much smaller structures and potentially enabling their incorporation into handheld devices.

In our work, we use a combination of numerical simulations and device modeling to design and evaluate the sensitivity of gyroscopes based on the electrical Sagnac effect in graphene. Our numerical simulations are carried out using the Kwant and pybinding simulation packages. As revealed by our simulations and device analysis, we find that a gyroscope based on a simple graphene ring structure requires extremely demanding criteria to reach the sensitivity needed for handheld applications, including in the limit of perfectly clean graphene. Meanwhile, the presence of even a small amount of disorder further erodes performance. We will discuss the criteria that must be met, and offer a perspective on the practicality of such a gyroscope design. Time permitting, we will then describe alternate designs that appear to be much more promising.

Presenting Author: Grzegorz Hader US Army DEVCOM, Armaments Center

Presenting Author Biography: Grzegorz (Greg) Hader is a mechanical engineer at the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command (DEVCOM) Armaments Center (AC), located at Picatinny Arsenal, NJ. Mr. Hader graduated with his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in 2002. He holds a Master of Engineering, Electrical, from Stevens Institute of Technology and is a PhD Candidate in the Interdisciplinary Track, with both the Physics and Engineering Physics and Mechanical Engineering Departments, in the Nanotechnology concentration. Areas of research include numerical modeling, Nano-fabrication, and Nano-characterization of both MEMS and NEMS sensors and flexible devices utilizing 1D and 2D materials.

Authors:

Aron Cummings Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2)
Grzegorz Hader US Army DEVCOM, Armaments Center
Eui-Hyeok Yang Stevens Institute of Technology