While flashy aircraft often steal the spotlight at aviation exhibitions like Le Bourget, Thales showcased a suite of quieter, yet potentially transformative, technologies.
SQIF: The „Superconducting Quantum Interference Filter”
Arnaud Brignon, Thales’ head of laboratory, highlighted a device resembling an oversized lightbulb, the SQIF (Superconducting Quantum Interference Filter), described as a „very powerful listening device.” Traditional radio frequency (RF) antennas need to be about half the size of the RF wavelength to be effective, leading to large antennas for different wavelengths. The SQIF aims to shrink this process dramatically.
Inside the „lightbulb” are superconducting quantum interference devices (SQUIDs), tiny superconducting current loops. These loops are highly sensitive to changes in the surrounding magnetic field, offering ultra-high sensitivity and a large bandwidth in a compact size. However, the system requires extreme cooling to 77 Kelvin (-196.15°C) provided by an integrated miniature cryocooler. „This demonstrator we’ve developed works,” Brignon stated.
Cold Atom Gyroscope: Pinpoint Positioning Without GPS
Thales also presented a model of an inertial measurement unit, a gyroscope for positioning without GPS, called Cold Atom. This system promises to increase the accuracy of classic inertial systems by a factor of 100, reducing location uncertainty from 10 kilometers (6.21 miles) to just 10 meters (33 feet).
The technology involves cooling atoms to -273°C (0.15 Kelvin) using lasers aimed from all directions. At such low temperatures, atoms behave as waves, allowing for precise estimation of a moving vehicle’s position relative to a fixed Earth reference frame. While validated in laboratory conditions, the system is being miniaturized from an initial volume of 1,500 liters to a target of five liters within three years, with potential aircraft integration in roughly a decade.
RSM NG/IFF: A 3-in-1 Surveillance Radar
In contrast to the ultra-cold technologies, Thales also showcased its new radar, the RSM NG/IFF (identification friend or foe), a 3-in-1 secondary surveillance radar. Developed in-house over the past three to four years, this system addresses the need for air operation managers to have instant access to a national air picture including both civil and military aircraft amidst increasing air traffic.
The system is designed for both commercial and military use, but classified military data remains segregated from civilian access. Mode 5, the encrypted NATO interrogation system, is kept separate from Mode S (the International Civil Aviation Organisation system) and Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B), ensuring that only authorized personnel can access classified data.
The RSM NG/IFF utilizes three standards from both the civilian and military domains (ICAO, ADS-B, and NATO), ensuring „civil and military airspace coordination is guaranteed, with no compromise on operational safety or detection performance,” according to Thales.
