This article will describe the various FTL technologies currently and previously in use by Nanite Systems products, including means of transit and communication.

Transport


Thorne drive


Stabilizes a traversable, unidirectional Einstein-Rosen bridge for the vehicle or object to travel through. Thorne drives are low-power and have localized effects, and, ultimately, limited range. Developed at the start of the 1980s, it depends on the Casimir effect to produce the negative energy field required to generate and stabilize the wormhole, which is only open for an instant.

Alcubierre drive


Also built on Casimir-effect generators, the Alcubierre drive is a newer technology dating to the late 2010s that curves spacetime to produce an insulated volume. This volume, commonly known as a warp bubble, can then exceed the speed of light by producing a multiplier for the vehicle's velocity. Alcubierre drives are fragile, energy-intensive, and slower than Thorne drives, but break even on these drawbacks for larger craft moving over great distances. Unlike relativistic sublight movement systems, the multiplier effect of the Alcubierre drive makes it possible to travel with minimal time dilation, provided the field is strong enough.

Communications


Schwarzschild repeater


A key component of deep space communications networks, using quantum teleportation to connect laser arrays through bidirectional Einstein-Rosen bridges. Schwarzschild repeaters generally connect to each other on a set schedule to engage in data exchange, although in emergencies a message can be forcibly propagated. Typically the aperture of these wormholes is just above the Planck scale, allowing them to function efficiently on solar-triggered passive Casimir arrays, despite the considerable energy costs of bidirectional bridging. The Schwarzchild repeater reached technological maturity in 1997. Some distant colonies still use small uncrewed craft with automated Thorne drive jumps to relay communications, commonly called courier drones, courier satellites, or auto-couriers.