Design of an Optically Pumped Cs Laboratory Frequency Standard

The use of optical pumping to replace state selecting magnets in a classical Rabi atomic-beam magnetic resonance apparatus was first proposed by KASTLER as early as 1950 [1]. A successful realization of this approach was achieved by ARDITI and CEREZ [2] in a Rb beam pumped by spectral lamps. The advent of laser sources in the near infrared led to the pioneering work of PICQUE [3] and ARDITI [4] on a Cs beam using the first available diode lasers and of LEWIS and FELDMAN with dye lasers [5]. Now many laboratories [6] are involved in the study or in the realization of optically pumped Cs beam frequency standards. In France, where, up to now, there was no laboratory primary frequency standard, the L.P.T.F. has started in 1982 the study of such an optically pumped standard. In this paper, we give the design of our Cs beam apparatus and some preliminary studies.

[1]  Alfred Kastler,et al.  Optical Methods of Atomic Orientation and of Magnetic Resonance , 1957 .

[2]  H. Beijerinck,et al.  Velocity distribution and angular distribution of molecular beams from multichannel arrays , 1975 .

[3]  A. Brillet.  Evaluation of the Light Shifts in an Optically Pumped Cesium Beam Frequency Standard , 1981 .

[4]  A. G. Mungall,et al.  The New NRC 2.1 Metre Primary Cesium Beam Frequency Standard, Cs V , 1973 .

[5]  J. Picqué,et al.  A cesium beam atomic clock using laser optical pumping. Preliminary tests , 1980 .

[6]  P. Cerez,et al.  Hyperfine Structure Separation of the Ground State of 87Rb Measured with an Optically Pumped Atomic Beam , 1972 .

[7]  C. C. Costain,et al.  Performance and Operation of the NRC Primary Cesium Clock, CsV , 1976 .

[8]  Giordano,et al.  State selection in a cesium beam by laser-diode optical pumping. , 1987, Physical review. A, General physics.

[9]  L. Hollberg,et al.  Frequency stabilization of semiconductor lasers by resonant optical feedback. , 1987, Optics letters.

[10]  O. C. Simpson,et al.  The Free Fall of Atoms and the Measurement of the Velocity Distribution in a Molecular Beam of Cesium Atoms , 1947 .

[11]  A. Premoli,et al.  Pulling by Neighbouring Transitions and its Effects on the Performance of Caesium-Beam Frequency Standards , 1984 .

[12]  J. Zacharias,et al.  Some New Applications and Techniques of Molecular Beams , 1956 .

[13]  J. Giordmaine,et al.  Molecular Beam Formation by Long Parallel Tubes , 1960 .

[14]  M. Arditi.  A Caesium Beam Atomic Clock with Laser Optical Pumping, as a Potential Frequency Standard , 1982 .

[15]  J. Picqué.  Hyperfine Optical Pumping of a Cesium Atomic Beam, and Applications , 1977 .