When a driverless car or autonomous drone loses GPS contact, it utilizes a tool known as an inertial measurement unit (IMU) to keep track of its orientation in space. Such devices could soon be more ...

A researcher in Israel has developed nano-sized optical gyroscopes that can fit on the head of a pin -- and, more usefully, on an average-sized computer chip -- without compromising the device's ...

Researchers have demonstrated a compact atomic gyroscope design that could, with further development, be portable, low power, and accurate enough to be used for navigation. Shrink rays may exist only ...

Shrink rays may exist only in science fiction, but similar effects are at work in the real world at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). After successfully miniaturizing both ...

Researchers from Caltech have developed the world’s tiniest optical gyroscope – a component used in flying vehicles for directional stability. The new gyroscope is 500 times smaller than the best ones ...

After successfully miniaturizing both clocks and magnetometers based on the properties of individual atoms, NIST physicists have now turned to precision gyroscopes, which measure rotation. NIST’s ...

Optical gyroscopes are widely used in vehicle navigation. They use laser beams in a fibre-optic loop, and the beams produce interference when the device's orientation changes. Optical devices are more ...