To advance inertial navigation, we present the scheme for a compact quantum sensor which is based on the quantum phenomenon of the angular Bloch oscillations and measuring exclusively the angular acceleration of slow external rotation. We study the dynamics of ultra-cold atoms confined in a toroidal trap with a ring-lattice along the azimuth angle, realized with the superposition of two copropagating Laguerre–Gaussian beams. In the presence of external rotation with a small angular acceleration, or a prescribed linear chirp between the two beams, the measured angular momentum of the trapped atoms exhibits a specific periodic behaviour in time, which we call as the angular Bloch oscillations. This quantum phenomenon is shown to be a key element of fruitful applications for (i) an efficient transfer of quantized angular momentum from the light to the atoms by controlling the chirp, and (ii) the direct determination of the angular acceleration of external rotation by measuring the Bloch period.

中文翻译：

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Angular Bloch 振荡及其应用


为了推进惯性导航，我们提出了一种紧凑型量子传感器的方案，该方案基于角 Bloch 振荡的量子现象，专门测量缓慢外旋的角加速度。我们研究了被限制在环形陷阱中的超冷原子的动力学，该陷阱沿方位角具有环晶格，这是通过两个共传播的拉盖尔-高斯光束的叠加实现的。在存在小角加速度的外旋转或两个光束之间规定的线性啁啾的情况下，测得的被捕获原子的角动量在时间上表现出特定的周期性行为，我们称之为角布洛赫振荡。这种量子现象被证明是富有成效的应用的关键要素，用于 （i） 通过控制啁啾将量子化角动量从光有效地转移到原子，以及 （ii） 通过测量布洛赫周期直接确定外旋转的角加速度。