Measurement principles
Acceleration measurements

Direct measurement of acceleration is very rare, and the sensor generally measures a secondary measurand (stress, strain, etc.) related to the acceleration, except for precise measurements of variations in the Earth's gravity field using a ballistic absolute gravimeter [1]. This type of accelerometer achieves a measurement sensitivity of 2 × 10^–6 Gal ≥ 2 × 10^–8 g .

Recent research has also led to the development of an atomic absolute gravimeter (LNE-SYRTE, ONERA) with a sensitivity of 10^–9 g . The principle is based on the use of "puffs" of cold atoms (i.e., whose vibrations are virtually stopped by six laser beams) which are released and whose fall...