Abstract: Methods, systems, and devices for wireless communications are described. An example method for object detection is provided which may include capturing at least three polarization angles of a scene. The method may include translating polarization parameters associated with the at least three polarization angles to a reference angle to create a vector map and resolving the vector map into parallel components and perpendicular components, wherein the parallel components are parallel to a plane of incidence of light in the scene and the perpendicular components are perpendicular. The method may further include determining a range map based at least in part on the parallel and perpendicular components, detecting an object present in the scene using the range map and an airlight scattering polarization component, and outputting an indication of the object.

Abstract: A system includes a vacuum chamber to receive a laser beam and a charged nanoparticle. The nanoparticle oscillates at a trapping frequency in a focus of the laser beam. Resonant oscillation of the nanoparticle is driven by a presence of an ambient electric field adjacent to the vacuum chamber. The system also includes a controller to tune the trapping frequency of an oscillating nanoparticle to be in resonance with the ambient electric field causing on-resonant enhancement of the system; a detector to detect positional changes of the oscillating nanoparticle; and a processor to calculate an electromagnetic force of the ambient electric field based on the positional changes of the oscillating nanoparticle.

Abstract: A hybrid propulsion system includes a housing, at least two electrodes, a solid-grain fuel material, a combustion chamber, an oxidizer port, and a nozzle. The housing has a first end and a second end and defines a cavity. The electrodes extend into the cavity. The fuel material is free of an oxidizer and is positioned in the cavity. The fuel material has a combustion surface and is exposed to the electrodes. The combustion chamber is defined between the combustion surface and the second end. The oxidizer port provides a flow of oxidizer to the combustion chamber. The nozzle is positioned at the second end. Combustion of the fuel material in the combustion chamber may be dominated by radiative heat transfer. Combustion of the fuel material in the combustion chamber may generate thrust of no more than 5 N at an oxidizer flow rate of no more than 5 g/s.

Abstract: For measuring an area of interest based on a sensor task and/or routing sensor data, a method discovers a network topology for a network comprising a plurality of network nodes connected by links. The method dynamically generates a minimum spanning tree from the network topology. Given sensor data traverses one link of the minimum spanning tree only once. The method routes a sensor task to a sensor with a sensor motion track that includes an area of interest. The method measures the area of interest with the sensor based on the sensor task. The method routes sensor data from the measurement of the area of interest via links of the minimum spanning tree.

Abstract: A composite thermal strap includes a pyrolytic graphite stack with multiple pyrolytic graphite sheets and first and second metal foils immediately adjacent and in thermal contact with the top and bottom faces of the pyrolytic graphite stack, together forming a composite stack. The first and second metal foils do not envelop the front and back sides of the pyrolytic graphite stack. A composite thermal strap also includes first and second metal end blocks with inside surfaces connected to and thermally linked to either end of the composite stack. Also disclosed is a particle containment sleeve configured to capture pyrolytic graphite particles or metal particles that may rub off from the composite stack. Also disclosed is a snorkel, configured to pass air from within a volume encapsulated by the particle containment sleeve and the atmosphere.

Abstract: A three-dimensional magneto-optical trap (3D GMOT) configured to trap a cold-atom cloud is disclosed. The 3D GMOT includes a single input light beam having its direction along a first axis, an area along a second and third axis that are both normal to the first axis, and a substantially flat input light beam intensity profile extending across its area. The 3D GMOT may also include a circular, diffraction-grating surface positioned normal to the first axis and having closely adjacent grooves arranged concentrically around a gap formed in its center. The circular, diffraction-grating surface is configured to diffract first-order light beams that intersect within an intersection region that lies directly above the gap and suppresses reflections and diffractions of all other orders. The 3D GMOT may further include a quadrupole magnetic field with its magnitude being zero within the intersection region.