Related papers: A grating-chip atomic fountain
We demonstrate a compact magneto-optical trap (MOT) of alkaline-earth atoms using a nanofabricated diffraction grating chip. A single input laser beam, resonant with the broad $^1$S$_0\,\rightarrow \,^1$P$_1$ transition of strontium, forms…
We demonstrate launching of laser-cooled Yb atoms in a continuous atomic beam. The continuous cold beam has significant advantages over the more-common pulsed fountain, which was also demonstrated by us recently. The cold beam is formed in…
Laser-cooled atoms are increasingly being used to realise practical quantum devices, motivating the development of compact and robust atom sources. Grating magneto-optical traps (gMOTs) simplify the cold-atom source architecture but are…
We study the trap depth requirement for the realization of an optical clock using atoms confined in a lattice. We show that site-to-site tunnelling leads to a residual sensitivity to the atom dynamics hence requiring large depths (50 to…
In this paper, we present a technique for magneto-optical cooling and trapping of neutral atoms using a single laser. The alternating-frequency magneto-optical trap (AF-MOT) uses an agile light source that sequentially switches between…
Single Cesium atoms are cooled and trapped inside a small optical cavity by way of a novel far-off-resonance dipole-force trap (FORT), with observed lifetimes of 2 to 3 seconds. Trapped atoms are observed continuously via transmission of a…
For the optical generation of ultrastable microwave signals for fountain clocks we developed a setup, which is based on a cavity stabilized laser and a commercial frequency comb. The robust system, in operation since 2020, is locked to a…
Optical atomic clocks demonstrate a better stability and lower systematic uncertainty than the highest performance microwave atomic clocks. However, the best performing optical clocks have a large footprint in a laboratory environment and…
An ensemble of rubidium atomic fountain clocks has been put into operation at the U.S. Naval Observatory (USNO). These fountains are used as continuous clocks in the manner of commercial cesium beams and hydrogen masers for the purpose of…
Currently, the most accurate and stable clocks use optical interrogation of either a single ion or an ensemble of neutral atoms confined in an optical lattice. Here, we demonstrate a new optical clock system based on an array of…
We report on the performance of the first table-top prototype atomic clock based on coherent population trapping (CPT) resonances with parallel linearly polarized optical fields (lin||lin configuration). Our apparatus uses a vertical cavity…
A new caesium (Cs) fountain clock NIM6 has been developed at the National Institute of Metrology (NIM) in China, for which a comprehensive uncertainty evaluation is presented. A three-dimensional magneto-optical trap (3D MOT) loading…
We demonstrate experimentally the continuous and pulsed loading of a slow and cold atomic beam into a magnetic guide. The slow beam is produced using a vapor loaded laser trap, which ensures two-dimensional magneto-optical trapping, as well…
We report the detection of high-contrast and narrow Coherent Population Trapping (CPT) Ramsey fringes in a Cs vapor cell using a simple-architecture laser system. The latter allows the combination of push-pull optical pumping (PPOP) and a…
We present a new scheme of compact Rubidium cold-atom clock which performs the diffuse light cooling, the microwave interrogation and the detection of the clock signal in a cylindrical microwave cavity. The diffuse light is produced by the…
The ultrafast and ultracold electron source, based on near-threshold photoionisation of a laser-cooled and trapped atomic gas, offers a unique combination of low transverse beam emittance and high bunch charge. Its use is however still…
Chip-scale atomic devices built around micro-fabricated alkali vapor cells are at the forefront of compact metrology and atomic sensors. We demonstrate a micro-fabricated vapor cell that is actively-pumped to ultra-high-vacuum (UHV) to…
We describe a dynamic magneto-optical trap (MOT) suitable for the use with vacuum systems in which optical access is limited to a single window. This technique facilitates the long-standing desire of producing integrated atom chips, many of…
We report on the realization of a new compact strontium optical clock using a 2-D magneto-optical-trap (2D-MOT) as cold atomic source and a multi-wavelength cavity as the frequency stabilization system. All needed optical frequencies are…
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…