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Chinese scientists say cheap SQUID submarine detector is world’s most sensitive
- Simplified design reduces need for six super-expensive sensors to just one, while amplifying the device’s precision ‘remarkably’
- The development could alter the strategic landscape, taking the exorbitant technology out of the hands of a select few military powers
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Stephen Chenin Beijing
Chinese scientists claim to have developed an ultra-sensitive version of the world’s most sophisticated submarine detection technology, at a cost that means it could be used by packs of drones to find and attack hidden vessels in the open sea.
The exorbitant costs of Superconducting Quantum Interference Devices (SQUIDs) have kept them out of the hands of all but a select few military powers, while their use has also been confined to specialised anti-submarine aircraft.
The simplified design detailed in a peer-reviewed paper, published by the Chinese-language journal Cryogenics & Superconductivity, could alter the strategic landscape, shifting China to a position of strength against advanced US submarines.
Some think tanks in Washington have advocated for the use of submarines to launch missiles against China’s coastal areas in the event of a conflict between the two nations.
However, Chinese military experts say that if the PLA could detect and potentially neutralise American submarines in open waters, it would greatly diminish the likelihood of US military intervention in China’s peripheral affairs.
The researchers, led by magnetic physicist Zhang Yingzi from North University of China, said their design slashed costs while increasing performance by an order of magnitude, making it possible for the detectors to be widely fitted to unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
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