An NSF grant has been awarded to UNH-IOL to assist with research efforts expanding support for open-source high accuracy timing solutions, such as White Rabbit. A technology developed by CERN that uses precision timing to achieve sub-nanosecond synchronization through an ethernet network.
As part of the NSF grant, under POSE, we are collaborating with teams at CERN, NIST, Nikhef, and more to come. The grant enables an open-source ecosystem called “Open PHASE” Open-Source Precision, High Accuracy and Security Environment. In short, this effort will assist in the growth of the open-source community enabling access to resources used to validate, measure, and calibrate users' systems specific to time synchronization.
Open PHASE Vision:
Open PHASE aims to enable a broad, open-source, high accuracy timing community with access to hardware, continuous integration developer resources, and services in a neutral environment to foster adoption, advancement, and best practices for delivering performant, interoperable, and secure heterogeneous solutions based on multiple vendors.
Research Summary:
Significant areas of current research and development, as well as existing operational systems, rely on high-accuracy, sub-nanosecond, distributed timing solutions. White Rabbit is a solution, developed by CERN for use in the Large Hadron Collider, as an open-source hardware, firmware, and software system that enables sub-nanosecond synchronization via ethernet networking.
Several areas of high-energy physics, fusion research, and quantum networking have benefited from this technology. In areas like advanced manufacturing, high accuracy timing solutions are becoming increasingly important in large distributed databases, deterministic time-sensitive telecommunications, and cyber-physical systems.
In this effort, the community will be provided with resources to validate, measure, and calibrate their systems, enabling the growth of the White Rabbit open-source ecosystem.
How to Get Involved:
Interested community members and stakeholders are encouraged to become part of the Open PHASE effort. By engaging with the White Rabbit Collaboration, Open PHASE enables the open-source community to integrate new and updated open-source hardware and perform continuous integration testing of open-source firmware and software, as well as enabling remote access to resources to help shape the direction, adoption and growth of the reliable, conformant, calibrated and interoperable open source high accuracy timing solutions. Learn more about the Open PHASE and White Rabbit project by contacting us below.