Related papers: Controlling systematic frequency uncertainties at …
We demonstrate programmable control over the spatial distribution of ultra-cold atoms confined in an optical lattice. The control is facilitated through a combination of spatial manipulation of the magneto-optical trap and atomic population…
Optical clocks benefit from tight atomic confinement enabling extended interrogation times as well as Doppler- and recoil-free operation. However, these benefits come at the cost of frequency shifts that, if not properly controlled, may…
In this article, the dynamics of an unbalanced two-ion crystal comprising the 'target' and the 'sensor' ions confined in a Penning trap has been studied. First, the low amplitude regime is addressed. In this regime, the overall potential…
Optical atomic clocks based on trapped ions suffer from systematic frequency shifts of the clock transition due to interaction with blackbody radiation from the environment. These shifts can be compensated if the blackbody radiation…
A full evaluation of the uncertainty budget for the ytterbium ion optical clock at the National Physical Laboratory (NPL) was performed on the electric octupole (E3) $^2\mathrm{S}_{1/2}\,\rightarrow\, ^2\mathrm{F}_{7/2}$ transition. The…
Laser spectroscopy of cold and trapped molecular ions is a powerful tool for fundamental physics, including the determination of fundamental constants, the laboratory test for their possible variation, and the search for a possible electric…
Magneto-optical traps are central to atomic and molecular quantum technologies and precision tests of fundamental physics, where both sensitivity and bandwidth scale strongly with atom number and loading rate. We demonstrate that employing…
We present the design and fabrication of an endcap-type Paul trap. The trap is designed for studies with Ca$^{+}$ and Yb$^{+}$. The design, fabrication process, and characterization are presented in detail with a focus on trapping a single…
We review a number of highly charged ions which have optical transitions suitable for building extremely accurate atomic clocks. This includes ions from Hf$^{12+}$ to U$^{34+}$, which have the $4f^{12}$ configuration of valence electrons,…
Rapid progress in the precision and accuracy of optical atomic clocks over the last decade has advanced the frontiers of timekeeping, metrology, and quantum science. However, the stabilities of most optical clocks remain limited by the…
Entangling operations are a necessary tool for large-scale quantum information processing, but experimental imperfections can prevent current schemes from reaching sufficient fidelities as the number of qubits is increased. Here it is shown…
We report the first direct frequency comparison between two multi-ion optical clocks based on the S$_{1/2}$ to D$_{5/2}$ transition in \Ca and \Sr ions. Using linear chains of up to nine \Ca ions and six \Sr ions, we demonstrate improved…
We experimentally demonstrated that the stability of an atomic clock improves at fastest rate $\tau^{-1}$ (where $\tau$ is the averaging time) when the phase of a local oscillator is genuinely compared to the continuous phase of many atoms…
Modern experiments with cold molecular ions have reached a high degree of complexity requiring frequent sample preparation, state initialization and protocol execution while demanding precise control over multiple devices and laser sources.…
Optical clock network requires the establishment of optical frequency transmission link between multiple optical clocks, utilizing narrow linewidth lasers. Despite achieving link noise levels of 10${^{-20}}$, the final accuracy is limited…
We have investigated the benefits of spin squeezed states for clocks operated with typical Brownian frequency noise-limited laser sources. Based on an analytic model of the closed servo-loop of an optical atomic clock, we can give…
Optical atomic clocks have demonstrated revolutionary advances in precision timekeeping, but their applicability to the real world is critically dependent on whether such clocks can operate outside a laboratory setting. The challenge to…
We have quantified a short term instability budget for an optical frequency standard based on cold, freely expanding calcium atoms. Such systems are the subject of renewed interest due to their high frequency stability and relative…
Optical atomic clocks using highly-charged ions hold an intriguing promise of metrology at the 19th significant figure. Here we study transitions within the $4f^{12}$ ground-state electronic configuration of highly charged ions. We consider…
The precise measurement of transition frequencies in cold, trapped molecules has applications in fundamental physics, and extremely high accuracies are desirable. We determine suitable candidates by considering simple molecules with a…