A position measurement system for measuring the position of a movable device versus a fixed device, the position measurement system comprising: a two-dimensional surface magnet array (200, 500a, 700) with at least three adjacent magnetized tracks having sequentially alternating magnetic polarities, each magnetized track having a constant width w; and at least one magnetic field sensor (225, 515a, 725) disposed proximate to, and maintaining a constant airgap with respect to, the 2D surface magnet array (200, 500a, 700), wherein the 2D surface magnet array (200, 500a, 700) and the at least one magnetic field sensor (225, 515a, 725) are in a specific relative orientation such that a relative trajectory of the at least one magnetic field sensor (225, 515a, 725) is configured to be at a tilted, acute angle θ with respect to a length direction of the at least three adjacent magnetized tracks of the 2D surface magnet array (200, 500a, 700); the relative trajectory comprises the 2D surface magnet array rotating relative to the at least one magnetic field sensor and the 2D surface magnet array comprises an axial cylindrical helical multipole magnet array having an outer radius R; the tilted, acute angle θ is set so that the at least one magnetic field sensor is configured to generate N periods of a periodic position signal per 360° revolution of the axial cylindrical helical multipole magnet array based on the formula: tan θ N = N w 2 πR; and in response to relative movement along the relative trajectory, the at least one magnetic field sensor (225, 515a, 725) is configured to generate the periodic position signal with a period P θ that depends, at least in part, upon the width w and the tilted, acute angle θ according to the equation: P θ = a w cos θ, with a = 1 or a = 2 a two-dimensional surface magnet array (200, 500a, 700) with at least three adjacent magnetized tracks having sequentially alternating magnetic polarities, each magnetized track having a constant width w; and at least one magnetic field sensor (225, 515a, 725) disposed proximate to, and maintaining a constant airgap with respect to, the 2D surface magnet array (200, 500a, 700), wherein the 2D surface magnet array (200, 500a, 700) and the at least one magnetic field sensor (225, 515a, 725) are in a specific relative orientation such that a relative trajectory of the at least one magnetic field sensor (225, 515a, 725) is configured to be at a tilted, acute angle θ with respect to a length direction of the at least three adjacent magnetized tracks of the 2D surface magnet array (200, 500a, 700); the relative trajectory comprises the 2D surface magnet array rotating relative to the at least one magnetic field sensor and the 2D surface magnet array comprises an axial cylindrical helical multipole magnet array having an outer radius R; the tilted, acute angle θ is set so that the at least one magnetic field sensor is configured to generate N periods of a periodic position signal per 360° revolution of the axial cylindrical helical multipole magnet array based on the formula: tan θ N = N w 2 πR; and in response to relative movement along the relative trajectory, the at least one magnetic field sensor (225, 515a, 725) is configured to generate the periodic position signal with a period P θ that depends, at least in part, upon the width w and the tilted, acute angle θ according to the equation: P θ = a w cos θ, with a = 1 or a = 2