Compact Optical Atomic Clock Based on a Two-Photon Transition in Rubidium

Abstract

Extra-laboratory atomic clocks are necessary for a wide array of applications (e.g. satellite-based navigation and communication). Building upon existing vapor cell and laser technologies, we describe an optical atomic clock, designed around a simple and manufacturable architecture, that utilizes the 778~nm two-photon transition in rubidium and yields fractional frequency instabilities of $3\times 10^{-13}/\sqrt{\tau (s)}$ for $\tau$ from 1~s to 10000~s. We present a complete stability budget for this system and explore the required conditions under which a fractional frequency instability of $1\times 10^{-15}$ can be maintained on long timescales. We provide precise characterization of the leading sensitivities to external processes including magnetic fields and fluctuations of the vapor cell temperature and 778~nm laser power. The system is constructed primarily from commercially-available components, an attractive feature from the standpoint of commercialization and deployment of optical frequency standards.

9 pages, 6 figures

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• Two-photon optical frequency reference with active ac Stark shift cancellation
• Ultraprecise Rydberg atomic localization using optical vortices
• Measurement of Rb g-series quantum defect using two-photon microwave spectroscopy
• Embedded Control System for Mobile Atom Interferometers
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• Experimental and theoretical study of dynamic polarizabilities in the $5S_{1/2}$-$5D_{5/2}$ clock transition in rubidium-87 and determination of E1 matrix elements
• AC polarizability and photoionization cross-section measurements in an optical lattice
• Vertex-type thermal correction to the one-photon transition rates
• Three-dimensional cooling of an atom beam source for high-contrast atom interferometry