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Boston Micro Develops Retroreflector for Army

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Boston Micromachines Corp., a provider of MEMS-based optical products for wavefront control systems, announced it has developed a modulating retroreflector (MRR) for asymmetric free-space covert communication and remote sensor integration.

The MMR was developed for the US Army in conjunction with Boston University’s College of Engineering.

The portable, compact, ultralow-power and lightweight device allows for long-range ground- and air-based communication and can be utilized in a range of military and nonmilitary applications, including battlefield communications, ship-to-ship naval situations and satellite-to-group station data transfer.

It employs the company’s MEMS modulator mounted in a hollow corner cube retroreflector for passively reflecting and modulating an interrogating laser source. Its modulator mirror is controlled using resonant, power-scavenging, high-voltage drive electronics that are capable of 24-hour continuous operation at 180-kHz data rates on a single 9-V battery.

Its development was funded by an award from the Department of Defense through the Small Business Technology Transfer Program (STTR).

For more information, visit: www.bostonmicromachines.com
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Published: March 2010
Glossary
modulator
A modulator is a device or component that modifies a carrier signal in order to encode information for transmission over a communication channel. The process of modulating involves varying one or more properties of the carrier signal, such as its amplitude, frequency, or phase, to represent the information being sent. Modulation is a fundamental technique in communication systems for encoding analog or digital data onto a carrier wave. There are several types of modulators, each with its own...
optical
Pertaining to optics and the phenomena of light.
reflector
A type of conducting surface or material used to reflect radiant energy.
sensor
1. A generic term for detector. 2. A complete optical/mechanical/electronic system that contains some form of radiation detector.
Americasbattlefield communicationsBoston MicromachinesBoston UniversityBusinessCollege of EngineeringCommunicationsdata transferdefenseDepartment of DefenseImaginglaser sourceMEMSmilitarymirrorsmodulating retro-reflectormodulatormodulator mirrorMRRnaval situationsopticalOpticspower scavengingreflectorremote sensorsensingsensorSensors & DetectorsSmall Business Technology Transfer ProgramSTTRUS Armywavefront control system

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