Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

Quantum technologies: Thales and SYRLINKS to develop next-generation atomic clocks for civil and defence applications

20/06/2022

Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Thales and SYRLINKS, a French company based in Rennes, Brittany, have signed an ambitious multi-year contract with the French defence procurement agency (DGA) to develop a new generation of very small, high-performance atomic clocks.

Code-named CHRONOS, these new quantum clocks will meet the requirements of numerous civil and military applications. Thanks to their very high stability (error of less than 1 second in tens of thousands of years), defence electronics equipment will be able to operate when a GNSS1 signal (GPS, Galileo, etc.) is unavailable, for example due to hostile jamming.

Working with the procurement agency, the partners will help safeguard Frances technological sovereignty in GNSS-denied positioning, guidance, navigation and ECCM-protected, encrypted military communications. In civil applications (5G network synchronisation, transport, energy, etc.), the CHRONOS quantum clocks will deliver unprecedented price/performance to French and international customers.

Large swathes of the modern economy now rely on satellite synchronisation, and all the worlds major powers have their own GNSS satellite constellations (like Europes Galileo system) to guarantee their independence and protect their sovereignty.

GNSS technology provides the precise time reference for critical infrastructure such as 4G/5G networks, Internet, air and rail transport, energy networks, global banking transactions, high-frequency trading, satellites, etc., which would quickly fail if the signal were unavailable. In view of this high level of dependency, back-up systems are needed to ensure that our civil and military infrastructure can continue to operate even if the GNSS timing signal is unavailable.

Thaless industrial facility in V lizy-Villacoublay and the Thales Research & Technology centre in Palaiseau, both near Paris, have the right combination of industrial capabilities and talent to manufacture the atomic and optical core of these future quantum clocks.

SYRLINKS, based in Rennes, Brittany, specialised in satellite radiocommunications, radionavigation systems and miniature atomic clocks, and its products were selected to equip 650 satellites for the American operator OneWeb. The company will develop the electronic brain of the CHRONOS clock and guarantee its high-precision timing function.

The CNRS will provide critical scientific support for this project via its SYRTE (Observatoire de Paris) and Femto-ST (Universit de Franche-Comt ) joint research units.

1Global Navigation Satellite System

Documents

PR_20220620_Quantum technologies Thales and SYRLINKS to develop next-generation atomic clocks for civil and defence applications.pdf

Contact

Thales, Media Relations Ground Transportation

+33 (0)6 25 15 72 93 chrystelle.dugimont@thalesgroup.com

01 Jul 2022

Euclid scientific satellite to study dark energy and dark matter to better understand the origin of the accelerated expansion of the Universe marks an important milestone

Read more

30 Jun 2022

Thales introduces S3NS in partnership with Google Cloud and unveils its offering in a first step towards the French Trusted Cloud label

Read more

30 Jun 2022

Thales technology is put into service on the new Chamart n - Torrej n de Velasco section, a key connection point between the north and south of Spain

Read more
LINK: https://www.thalesgroup.com/en/worldwide/group/press_release/quantum-t...
See more stories from thales

More from Thales

30/06/2025

Thales 2025 Global Cloud Security Study Reveals Organizations Struggle to Secure Expanding, AI-Driven Cloud Environments

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn 52% report AI security spending is displacing tr...

30/06/2025

Thales Alenia Space to develop SOLiS very-high-throughput laser communications demonstrator

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Cannes, June 30th, 2025 - Thales Alenia Space, t...

27/06/2025

Thales and KONGSBERG to establish new major Defence communications joint venture in Norway

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Thales, a global high-tech leader, and Kongsberg...

26/06/2025

The European Space Agency awards Thales Alenia Space the study of the SIRIUS mission to monitor Urban Heat Islands from space

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Madrid, June 26, 2025 - The European Space Agenc...

24/06/2025

Thales Launches File Activity Monitoring (FAM) to Strengthen Real-Time Visibility and Control Over Unstructured Data

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn New capability gives instant visibility to detec...

24/06/2025

Imperva Application Security Integrates API Detection and Response, Setting A New Standard in API Security

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn First unified, single-pane-of-glass platform to ...

24/06/2025

Thales celebrates American Airlines 1st 787-9 aircraft flying with AVANT Up Inflight Entertainment System

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn The American Airlines 787-9 takes flight with Th...

20/06/2025

Thales supports airspace sovereignty in Albania with Ground Master 400 Alpha surveillance radar

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn At the Paris Air Show, in the presence of the Fr...

19/06/2025

Thales and Terma sign a Memorandum of Understanding to expand cooperation in the Air, Naval and Space domains

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Thales, a global technology leader for the Defen...

12/06/2025

Thales ranked No.1 most attractive employer among engineering students in France in 2025

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Thales has secured the top spot in the 2025 rank...

12/06/2025

Thales invests 55 million euros to anchor next-generation resilient navigation in France

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Thales strengthens its European leadership in re...

11/06/2025

Software Rpublique unveils "vision 4rescue", an integrated technological ecosystem for the next-gen of Emergency Services

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn In response to the increasing frequency and inte...

05/06/2025

Vietnam Space Committee, OSB Group and Thales Partner to Promote Education and Innovation in Space Technologies

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Vietnam has been building a national framework t...

04/06/2025

Thales Unveils State-of-the-Art Inflight Entertainment & Services Lab at its Engineering Competence Centre in Bengaluru

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn The new lab, dedicated to development of Infligh...

03/06/2025

Thales reinvents secure payment systems for a data-driven future, showcasing leadership at Money20/20 Europe

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Payment systems must evolve beyond traditional c...

02/06/2025

cortAIx SG: Thales Accelerates Trusted AI Innovation in Singapore with Strategic Partnerships

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Thales's global acceleration in trusted AI e...

02/06/2025

Cyshield uses Thales technology to launch Egypt's first connectivity service for eSIM devices

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Cyshield, a leading digital solutions company, s...

22/05/2025

Thales Reinforces Commitment to Malaysia at LIMA 2025 with New Leadership and Contracts Awarded

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn As a strategic partner in helping Malaysia achie...

21/05/2025

Tawazun Council and Thales Sign Agreement to Establish Ground Master Air Surveillance Radar Production Facility in UAE

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn As part of the Tawazun Economic Program, Thales ...

19/05/2025

Thales to provide a cyber-secured and AI-powered autonomous mine countermeasures system to the Republic of Singapore Navy

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn The unique, sea-proven Pathmaster solution will ...

19/05/2025

Thales, Radiall and FoxConn have initiated preliminary discussions on semiconductor production

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Thales, Radiall and FoxConn announce they have i...

15/05/2025

Thales powers one million digital payment experiences with Vipps mobile wallet in Norway

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Thales fully supports the success of Vipps, Norw...

15/05/2025

Thales boosts Air Traffic Management System for Serbia and Montenegro Air Traffic Services SMATSA

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Serbia and Montenegro Air Traffic Services SMATS...

15/05/2025

Thales inaugurates GenF, a first step towards nuclear fusion energy

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Thales, a global leader in high-power lasers, will inaugurate GenF on Thursday 15 May 2025 in Le Barp (Bordeaux). GenF aims to t...

13/05/2025

Thales celebrates 50 years in Greece

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn On the occasion of DEFEA, Greece's premier defence exhibition, Thales, a global leader in advanced technologies for the Defe...

13/05/2025

Thales launches TRAC SIGMA - an innovative multi-mission Primary Surveillance Radar for Approach and Long-Range Air Surveillance

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Thales unveils its new multi-mission Primary Sur...

30/04/2025

Thales modernises the world-class TACTIS armoured vehicle training centre for the Royal Netherlands Army

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Thales has secured a major contract to modernise...

29/04/2025

One out of three secure civil IDs delivered each year is powered by Thales

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn In a world where identity fraud represents a critical vulnerability for citizens and societies, Thales is leading the transforma...

25/04/2025

Thales and Deloitte form Strategic Alliance to Help Enhance Data Protection and Governance Services

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Enhancing Data Protection and Governance Service...

24/04/2025

Thales reports its order intake and sales for the first quarter of 2025

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Order intake: 3.8 billion, down -25% (-27% on an organic basis1) Sales: 5.0 billion, up 12.2% ( 9.9% on an organic basis) A...

23/04/2025

Thales and Michelin drive software revenue growth with innovative simulation software

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Enables Michelin to focus on development of its ...

17/04/2025

MGCS Project Company GmbH (MPC) established in Cologne

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Thursday, 17 April 2025 - The next step has now been taken in the Franco-German armaments project Main Ground Combat System (MGC...

14/04/2025

Thales to supply NATO with latest-generation situational awareness solution to ensure decision superiority

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Thales has been selected by NATO to deliver phas...

08/04/2025

U.S. Air Force awards NSPA F-16 Helmet Mounted Display contract for Thales Scorpion HMD

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Thales Thales subsidiary, Thales Defense &...

08/04/2025

Thales revolutionizes Inflight Entertainment (IFE) with 360Stream Live TV and innovative Near-Live highlights

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Thales revolutionizes inflight TV with 360Stream...

07/04/2025

Thales signs a contract to deliver the Ground Master 200 MM/C Multi Mission Compact radar to Sweden

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn The Swedish Defence Materiel Administration (F r...

07/04/2025

Thales announces next-generation Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) for resilient navigation

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Thales is a global leader in inertial navigation...

03/04/2025

Thales to recruit 8,000 people in 2025 and accelerate its 'Learning company' programme

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Thales, a global leader in advanced technologies...

02/04/2025

Thales Alenia Space wins 51 million contract to extend EGNOS service life

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Strengthening Europe's critical navigation infrastructure thanks to EGNOS satellite-based augmentation system Cannes, April ...

01/04/2025

DSTA and Thales Announce AI-Driven Co-Lab to Strengthen Singapore's Defence Systems

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA) and...

31/03/2025

Thales unveils its PANORAMIC quad-tube night vision goggle

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Presented for the first time at SOFINS1, PANORAMIC is a lightweight, compact night vision goggle equipped with four light intens...