POSE: Phase II: Open-Source Precision, High Accuracy and Security Environment (OpenPHASE) For Time Verification, Calibration, and Interoperability

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.

White Rabbit has since grown in its use and application in many areas of high-energy physics, fusion research, and quantum networking as examples. High accuracy timing solutions are also increasingly critical to large distributed databases, deterministic time-sensitive telecommunications, and cyber-physical systems in areas such as advanced manufacturing.

The pathway to enable an Open Source Ecosystem, titled herein as the Open-Source Precision, High Accuracy and Security Environment For Time Verification, Calibration, and Interoperability, coordinates with related industry forums, international standards, and other stakeholders through a steering committee to help direct and shape the growing community to encourage further onboarding, developer engagement, and provide a path for end-user feedback to be addressed.

The principal focus of this effort is the growth of the White Rabbit open-source ecosystem, enabling the community with access to resources to validate, measure, and calibrate their systems. The work establishes and expands best practices in validating open-source high-accuracy timing solutions such as White Rabbit, and where possible, develop open-source solutions, e.g. for automation of calibration processes.

The effort fosters accelerated deployment of solutions while maintaining end-user confidence in the open-source solutions to grow their adoption. The work enables the open source community with the resources and process to integrate new and updated open-source hardware and perform continuous integration testing of their open-source firmware and software updates.

Resources are remotely accessible to the global members who will help shape the direction and growth of the ecosystem.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.