Sensor Wars: The Quantum Menace

Tech Unmanned

This episode of Tech Unmanned is all about quantum sensors. Lindsey and Kaitlyn are joined by Dr. Robert (Bob) Wyllie, a Senior Research Scientist and the Chief of the Quantum Systems Division at the Georgia Tech Research Institute, and Sarah Jacobs Gamberini, a Policy Fellow at the National Defense University (NDU) Center for the Study of Weapons of Mass Destruction (CSWMD). Bob and Sarah steer us through the tangled web of technical and policy challenges and opportunities of developing quantum sensor technology. Lindsey and Kaitlyn wrap up the discussion by pulling on some threads of the expert discussion and how it intersects with national security and ongoing policy.

For further reading on topics and documents mentioned in the episode,

• Quantum Sensing's Potential Impacts on Strategic Deterrence and Modern Warfare, by Sarah Jacobs Gamberini and Lawrence Rubin, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.orbis.2021.03.012
• Defense Science Board study: https://dsb.cto.mil/reports/2010s/DSB_QuantumTechnologies_Executive%20Summary_10.23.2019_SR.pdf
• DoD R&E priorities: https://www.cto.mil/modernization-priorities/
• Congressional Research Service Primer on Quantum Technology: https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/IF/IF11836