High resolution accelerometer with interferometric readout

Accelerometers are crucial components in space applications. They measure acceleration forces, which can be used to determine the orientation, velocity, and position of spacecraft. Accelerometers for space applications are typically based on a capacitive readout. Here we present the update of the accelerometer based on a classical mass-spring mechanical system with an interferometric readout realized at INRIM. The heterodyne interferometer is based on 1064 nm diode laser connected via fiber to the optical board and reaches a resolution of about $3 \mathrm{~nm} / \mathrm{VHz}$ at 1 mHz.