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Startup · United States

AOSense

HQ SunnyvaleFounded 200411-50 employees

AOSense, Inc. is a leading developer and manufacturer of innovative atom-optic sensors for inertial navigation, time and frequency standards, and gravity measurement.

Website

Federal Prime Contracts$114M obligated · FY2008–FY2026

Obligated
$114M
FY2008–FY2026
Contract actions
433
95 awards
Peak year
FY2016
$16.7M
Top buyer
U.S. Air Force
34% of obligations
Obligations by fiscal yearLast 5 full years avg $3.4MFaded: FY2026 so far; DoD publishes actions about 90 days late.
FY2008: $276K · 3 actionsFY2009: $9.0M · 8 actionsFY2010: $3.3M · 11 actionsFY2011: $1.6M · 11 actionsFY2012: $11.8M · 17 actionsFY2013: $5.2M · 18 actionsFY2014: $12.7M · 32 actionsFY2015: $13.6M · 31 actionsFY2016: $16.7M · 58 actionsFY2017: $8.3M · 35 actionsFY2018: $8.6M · 43 actionsFY2019: $2.7M · 26 actionsFY2020: $2.4M · 27 actionsFY2021: $7.1M · 20 actionsFY2022: $448K · 36 actionsFY2023: $1.6M · 19 actionsFY2024: $4.5M · 15 actionsFY2025: $3.4M · 13 actionsFY2026 (to date): $1.2M · 10 actions
’08’12’16’20’24’26
Show as table
Obligations by fiscal year
Fiscal yearObligatedActionsAwards
FY2026 (to date)$1.2M106
FY2025$3.4M136
FY2024$4.5M1513
FY2023$1.6M198
FY2022$448K3629
FY2021$7.1M2015
FY2020$2.4M2718
FY2019$2.7M2613
FY2018$8.6M4320
FY2017$8.3M3518
FY2016$16.7M5823
FY2015$13.6M3123
FY2014$12.7M3219
FY2013$5.2M1813
FY2012$11.8M178
FY2011$1.6M115
FY2010$3.3M113
FY2009$9.0M84
FY2008$276K32

Defense programs

  1. Space Based Infrared System (SBIRS)$1.5M 1.3%

Only actions coded to a DoD acquisition program.

What they sell (PSC)

  1. R&D- Defense Other: Other (Advanced Development)$25.1M 22%
  2. R&D- Defense System: Electronics/Communication Equipment (Basic Research)$13.2M 12%
  3. National Defense R&D Services; Defense-Related Activities; Applied Research$9.4M 8.2%
  4. R&D- Defense Other: Other (Applied Research/Exploratory Development)$8.4M 7.3%
  5. General Science and Technology R&D Services; General Science and Technology; Basic Research$8.1M 7.1%
  6. National Defense R&D Services; Department of Defense - Military; Experimental Development$7.3M 6.4%
  7. R&D- Defense Other: Other (Basic Research)$7.3M 6.4%
  8. Space R&D Services; Space Flight, Research and Supporting Activities; Basic Research$6.7M 5.8%
  9. National Defense R&D Services; Atomic Energy Defense Activities; Basic Research$5.1M 4.5%
  10. National Defense R&D Services; Department of Defense - Military; Applied Research$4.7M 4.1%
  11. R&D- Other Research and Development (Basic Research)$3.7M 3.3%
  12. National Defense R&D Services; Atomic Energy Defense Activities; Applied Research$3.4M 3.0%
  13. R&D- Defense System: Electronics/Communication Equipment (Applied Research/Exploratory Development)$2.9M 2.5%
  14. General Science & Technology R&D SVCS; General Science & Technology; R&D Administrative Expenses$2.6M 2.3%
  15. R&D- Other Research and Development (Applied Research/Exploratory Development)$1.5M 1.3%
  16. All other$5.0M 4.3%

Industry (NAICS)

  1. Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (Except Biotechnology)$85.2M 74%
  2. Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (Except Nanotechnology and Biotechnology)$26.2M 23%
  3. Space Research and Technology$1.9M 1.7%
  4. Analytical Laboratory Instrument Manufacturing$408K 0.4%
  5. Fiber Optic Cable Manufacturing$197K 0.2%
  6. Electromedical and Electrotherapeutic Apparatus Manufacturing$183K 0.2%
  7. Engineering Services$183K 0.2%
  8. Research and Development in Biotechnology$149K 0.1%
  9. Semiconductor and Related Device Manufacturing$35K 0.0%
  10. Optical Instrument and Lens Manufacturing$25K 0.0%

Where the work is done

  1. California$113M 99%
  2. District of Columbia$728K 0.6%
  3. Maryland$183K 0.2%
  4. Virginia$149K 0.1%
  5. Colorado$18K 0.0%
  6. New Mexico$17K 0.0%

Contract pricing

  1. Cost Plus Fixed Fee$88.5M 77%
  2. Firm Fixed Price$25.8M 23%
  3. Cost No Fee$220K 0.2%

Competition

  1. Full and Open Competition$68.3M 60%
  2. Full and Open Competition After Exclusion of Sources$44.4M 39%
  3. Not Competed Under SAP$891K 0.8%
  4. Not Competed$726K 0.6%
  5. Competed Under SAP$104K 0.1%

Largest awards10

  • Complete the Taskings for the High Dynamic Range Atomic Sensors (Hidra) Program.Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency · USAspending ↗
    $25.1MSep 3, 2009
  • IGF::OT::IGF Stoic - Rack-mount Optical Clock (Roc)U.S. Air Force · USAspending ↗
    $12.9MJun 9, 2015
  • IGF::OT::IGF Sbir Phase III Award. Phase I/ii Awarded Under NNX13CG02C Cold Atom Gravity Gradiometer for Geodesy: the Contractor Shall Design, Construct, and Optimize A High-performance Gravity Gradiometer Based on Light-pulse Atom Interferometry. the Contractor Shall Build and Test A Second Prototype Zero-dead-time (Zdt) Absolute Gravimeter. the Instruments in This Phase III Effort Takes Advantage of Technologies Developed Under NASA Sbir Phase I and Phase II Programs.NASA · USAspending ↗
    $8.1MAug 25, 2014
  • IGF::OT::IGF Chip Scale Combinatoral Atomic Navigator CscanU.S. Air Force · USAspending ↗
    $7.3MApr 4, 2013
  • Quantum Assisted Sensing and Readout (Quasar) Program. the Purpose of the Program Is to Analyze, Design, Build and Demonstrate A Completely New Type of Optical Atomic Frequency Standard Based on A Laser Cooled Slow Atomic Beam of Alkaline-earth Atoms.Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency · USAspending ↗
    $6.5MApr 25, 2011
  • Compact High Performance Atom Interferometer for Navigation (Chain)U.S. Air Force · USAspending ↗
    $4.4MOct 18, 2010
  • IGF::CT::IGF ONRBAA15-001 Long Range Broad Agency Announcement (Baa) for Navy and Marine Corps Science and TechnologyU.S. Navy · USAspending ↗
    $3.3MJul 1, 2015
  • Vapor with Pulsed Optical Readout ClockU.S. Navy · USAspending ↗
    $2.9MJun 22, 2018
  • Sensors for Atomic Inertial Navigation and Timing (Saint)U.S. Navy · USAspending ↗
    $2.4MMay 24, 2018
  • Sbir Phase III - Quantum Gravity Gradiometer (Qgg) Atomic Physics Package (App) Technology Maturation and Design Using Free-space Ultra-cold Rb SourceNASA · USAspending ↗
    $2.4MAug 23, 2024

Signed obligations on federal prime contracts (award types A–D) from USAspending, FY2008 through Oct 9, 2026. Obligations are money the government committed, not company revenue, and include de-obligations. Subcontracts and grants are excluded. Matching is by registered UEI.

View all 95 awards →

Funding1 round

Equity raised
Undisclosed
Debt, secondaries & grants
$149K
Latest
$149KGrant · Jun 17, 2013

Raised counts equity rounds; debt, secondary sales and grants are totaled separately. Amounts in other currencies are converted at the announcement month's average rate. A ~ marks an estimated or converted amount.

Systems17

AOSense compact gravimeter

A portable gravimeter that integrates lasers, vacuum, and electronics to measure gravity with cold‑atom technology.

Maturity not rated

AOS-KM-2

Miniature kinematic mount for compact lasers and optical systems.

Maturity not rated

Cold Atomic Beam System

Cold atomic beam source for precision experiments and atomic devices.

Maturity not rated

Erbium Fiber Frequency Comb

Polarization-maintaining fiber frequency-comb optical package; pump lasers and control electronics are supplied separately.

Maturity not rated
View all 17 systems →

Newest unveiled first. Open a system for its milestone timeline, components and sources.

Supply Chain1 facility

Facilities1

  • AOSense headquarters and labs
    Headquarters · Fremont, CA, United States
    Operating
    Confirmed

Company Metrics

LinkedIn employee profiles
49
Observed Oct 11, 2026
Bright Data / LinkedIn · Source ↗
LinkedIn followers
3,806
Observed Oct 11, 2026
Bright Data / LinkedIn · Source ↗

Employee-profile counts reflect LinkedIn profiles associated with the company, not verified headcount. One observation establishes a baseline; it does not establish growth.

Sources23

Show all 23 sources and supporting evidence

Profile3

  1. 1

    AOSense · Supports Organization · description, Organization · name, Organization · website

    “AOSense, Inc. is a leading developer and manufacturer of innovative atom-optic sensors for inertial navigation, time and frequency standards, and gravity measurement.”
  2. 2

    AOSense · Supports Organization · status

    “AOSense, Inc. is always seeking talented scientists, engineers, and support staff”
  3. 3

    Sixth-Domain · Supports Organization · country, Organization · kind

    “{"country": "USA", "hq_iso2": "US", "id": "c281ce73-6613-4bc7-b13a-2d59dce6cbbc"}”

Systems15

  1. 4

    AOSense · Supports System

    “The AOSense Laser Lock Module (LLM) provides a compact, mechanically-robust laser frequency reference”
  2. 5

    AOSense · Supports System

    “Atomic oven with collimated output for ultra-high vacuum systems, loaded with Sr, Yb, Ca or Ba. The oven provides superior heat isolation while achieving high atomic flux. Its low power consumption results in exceptionally low pressures during normal operation for temperatures up to 650 °C. The chamber is shipped in an ultra-high vacuum storage chamber supplied by AOSense. ”
  3. 6

    AOSense · Supports System

    “Complete cold atomic beam sources for alkaline-earth precision experiments and atomic devices. Small chambers with patented permanent-magnet Zeeman slowers and in-vacuum 2D MOT optics allow high flux with low outgassing and no thermal beam flux at the cold atom port, which provides a CF-133 connection to customer vacuum chamber. Advanced thermal design of the effusion oven allows long-lifetime operation at minimal heating power, with no water cooling. An integrated low-outgassing hot window is provided for coupling of on-axis Zeeman cooling light. Ion and getter pumps integrated into the chamber manage outgassing from the oven at temperatures up to 600 °C. Operating baseline pressures below 1×10-11 mbar can be attained in the customer’s downstream cold atom (typically 3D MOT) science chamber, with suitable pumping speed provided at the differentially-pumped cold beam output port.”
  4. 7

    AOSense · Supports System

    “The AOSense Integrated Laser Controller + Servo (ILC-Servo) has all the features of the standard ILC with additional servo features that may be used to lock the laser to an atomic reference line, optical cavity, or optical beat note. All options and adjustable parameters are fully digitally controlled.”
  5. 8

    AOSense · Supports System

    “The AOSense frequency comb is a low noise, polarization maintaining (PM) device. Key features include a PM fiber architecture centered at 1550nm with turnkey modelocking; a free-running linewidth of the carrier-envelope offset frequency of <200 kHz; a temperature-insensitive all-fiber f-2f interferometer exhibiting fceo beatnotes with SNR > 45dB (300kHz RBW); and dual fast/slow cavity length actuators with a bandwidth of >300 kHz. The repetition rate of the comb is factory set and allows matching across multiple combs for dual comb applications. The optics package incorporates an optical heterodyne module designed for locking to the comb to an ITU-specified laser reference. The comb is capable of supporting an Allan deviation of < 5 x 10-18 at 1 second and ~10-20 after 105 seconds. Add-on features include all fiber extensions to visible wavelengths corresponding to several atomic transitions. An integrated comb electronics package is currently under development.”
  6. 9

    AOSense · Supports System

    “Rack-mount microwave atomic clock using laser-cooled 87Rb atoms.  Production unit target specifications:  Allan deviation 2×10-12 @ 1 s, 2×10-14 @ 104 s; flicker floor 1×10-14; absolute accuracy < 1×10-13.”
  7. 10

    AOSense · Supports System

    “Real-world atomic sensors and other exacting applications require laser sources with specific size, environmental, and optical characteristics, placing unique constraints that most commercial laser systems do not meet. AOSense has developed a line of external cavity diode lasers (ECDLs) designed to meet these needs, offering narrow linewidth in a compact package.”
  8. 11

    AOSense · Supports System

    “Rack-based laser systems for quantum research/applications.”
  9. 12

    AOSense · Supports System

    “AOSense offers dual-stage, free-space optical isolators at 690 nm, 780 nm, and 852 nm for enhanced isolation. The innovative, small package size enables integration into compact laser sources and amplifiers without sacrificing transmission efficiency. The low external magnetic field enables the isolator to tightly integrate into systems with high magnetic-field sensitivity such as atomic spectrometers, magnetometers, clocks, and cold-atom devices.”
  10. 13

    AOSense · Supports System

    “Free-space optical isolators at 690 nm, 780 nm, and 852 nm. The innovative, small package size enables integration into compact laser sources and amplifiers without sacrificing transmission efficiency. The low external magnetic field enables the isolator to tightly integrate into systems with high magnetic-field sensitivity such as atomic spectrometers, magnetometers, clocks, and cold-atom devices.”
  11. 14

    AOSense · Supports System

    “The AOS-KM-2 is designed for applications requiring small form factor, such as compact lasers and optical systems. The non-magnetic materials construction is ideal for applications requiring low magnetic field, such as atomic clocks, laser spectroscopy, and quantum technologies. The actuators have 200 TPI (0.127 mm pitch) resolution. Sapphire jewel pads enhance stability and reduce thermal drift.”
  12. 15

    AOSense · Supports System

    “AOSense offers two compact TA units: free-space tapered amplifier unit and fiber pigtailed tampered amplifier unit, which has fiber coupled input.”
  13. 16

    AOSense · Supports System

    “AOSense offers two compact TA units: free-space tapered amplifier unit and fiber pigtailed tampered amplifier unit, which has fiber coupled input.”
  14. 17

    AOSense · Supports System

    “The AOS-Cav-λR-λ1-λ2 is a two-axis, non-confocal Fabry-Perot optical cavity in UHV for stabilization transfer from a reference laser with wavelength lR (e.g., rubidium-stabilized 780 nm laser) to disparate laser wavelengths (e.g., for atomic ion laser cooling) either by offset Pound-Drever-Hall locking or scanning transfer technique. The target finesse is >1,000 for all wavelengths. Device includes electrical feedthrough/interface for PZTs, thermistor, and heating element for temperature stabilization. An ion pump controller is not included.”
  15. 18

    AOSense · Supports System

    “The AOS-Cav-λR-λl is a non-confocal Fabry-Perot optical cavity in UHV for stabilization transfer from a reference laser with wavelength λR (e.g., rubidium-stabilized 780 nm laser) to disparate laser wavelengths (e.g., for atomic ion laser cooling) either by offset Pound-Drever-Hall locking or scanning transfer technique.  The target finesse is >1,000 for all wavelengths. Device includes electrical feedthrough/interface for PZTs, thermistor, and heating element for temperature stabilization.  An ion pump controller is not included.”

Funding1

  1. 19

    PitchBook · Supports Funding round · amount

    “Grant | 17-Jun-2013 | $149K”

Supply chain3

  1. 20

    AOSense · Supports Facility, Role

    “Our 28,000 ft2 facility, located in Fremont, CA is equipped with multiple cleanroom labs”
  2. 21

    AOSense · Supports Facility

    “40919 Encyclopedia Circle Fremont, CA 94538-2436, USA”
  3. 22

    LinkedIn · Supports Facility, Organization · employee range, Organization · founded year, Organization · linkedin url, Organization · ownership, Organization metric · employees in linkedin, Organization metric · followers

    “headquarters: Fremont, California”

People1

  1. 23

    Crunchbase · Supports Organization · employee range, Organization · hq city, Organization · legal name, Organization · linkedin url, Role

    “employee_range: 11-50 (profile: 11-50)”

Government identifiers1

UEI
C185QEUVTTM6
AOSENSE, INC.
Checked Oct 14, 2026

Identifiers are matched to this legal entity; related companies may hold different registrations.

Each fact on this page is attached to the sources that support it. Archived copies are linked when we keep one.