The Advanced Concepts Laboratory (ACL), formerly the Signature Technology Laboratory, is one of eight labs in the
Georgia Tech Research Institute
The Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI) is the nonprofit applied research arm of the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. GTRI employs around 2,400 people, and is involved in approximately $600 milli ...
and one of three labs under the Sensors and Intelligent Systems directorate.
ACL conducts research and development in four technical areas:
electromagnetic
In physics, electromagnetism is an interaction that occurs between particles with electric charge. It is the second-strongest of the four fundamental interactions, after the strong force, and it is the dominant force in the interactions of a ...
materials and structures, electromagnetic
aperture
In optics, an aperture is a hole or an opening through which light travels. More specifically, the aperture and focal length of an optical system determine the cone angle of a bundle of rays that come to a focus in the image plane.
An ...
s and scattering,
optical
Optics is the branch of physics that studies the behaviour and properties of light, including its interactions with matter and the construction of instruments that use or detect it. Optics usually describes the behaviour of visible, ultrav ...
and infrared physics and
phenomenology
Phenomenology may refer to:
Art
* Phenomenology (architecture), based on the experience of building materials and their sensory properties
Philosophy
* Phenomenology (philosophy), a branch of philosophy which studies subjective experiences and a ...
, and
secure information systems.
Research areas
ACL's primary focus is to take more academic-based research and create prototype devices that demonstrate new technologies. In particular, the laboratory specializes in antenna design,
quantum computing
Quantum computing is a type of computation whose operations can harness the phenomena of quantum mechanics, such as superposition, interference, and entanglement. Devices that perform quantum computations are known as quantum computers. Thou ...
, and electromagnetic materials. In addition to those fields, they are also specialized in
signal processing, electronic attack and protection, and optical and infrared physics.
The laboratory maintains an extensive numerical modeling and measurement capability for the design and development of thin, broadband
antennas
In radio engineering, an antenna or aerial is the interface between radio waves propagating through space and electric currents moving in metal conductors, used with a transmitter or receiver. In transmission, a radio transmitter supplies a ...
with tailored performance and controlled
impedance surfaces for management/control of signature characteristics of systems and components; they cover electromagnetic phenomena from quasi-static to ultraviolet wavelengths. Numerical modeling has recently been extended to nano- and micro-magnetics phenomena with emphasis placed on modeling of nano particle nonlinear magnetics (NPNM). Novel techniques for correlating optical and infrared scattering properties with material composition have been developed and modeled for application to paint and photographic film characterization, optical signature control, and the evaluation of sensors and image based tracking algorithms.
ACL maintains and operates extensive facilities for optical measurements specializing in laser and white light
scatterometry
A scatterometer or diffusionmeter is a scientific instrument to measure the return of a beam of light or radar waves scattered by diffusion in a medium such as air. Diffusionmeters using visible light are found in airports or along roads to measure ...
, electromagnetic materials characterization,
radar cross-section
Radar cross-section (RCS), also called radar signature, is a measure of how detectable an object is by radar. A larger RCS indicates that an object is more easily detected.
An object reflects a limited amount of radar energy back to the source. ...
measurements, antenna characterization, computational electromagnetics, and ion trap quantum computing using
hyperfine
In atomic physics, hyperfine structure is defined by small shifts in otherwise degenerate energy levels and the resulting splittings in those energy levels of atoms, molecules, and ions, due to electromagnetic multipole interaction between the ...
and optical qubits. The secure information systems work is nationally recognized for the design, development, and deployment of enterprise information systems requiring state-of-the-art database, platform, and Internet security.
References
External links
ACL official website
{{GTRI
ACL