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Joint Conference of the European Frequency and Time Forum and IEEE International Frequency Control Symposium (EFTF/IFCS)

An atomic frequency micrometer based on the coherent population beating phenomenon

Zhong Wang, Jianye Zhao, Xiao-Na Zhao, Li Liu, Yu-Xin Zhuang, Dawei Li

Published Apr 1, 2015• 4 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We have demonstrated an atomic frequency micrometer based on the coherent population beating phenomenon, which enables us to obtain the beat frequency between the measured signal and the atomic transition frequency. The beat frequency and its fluctuations are detected and accurately measured through digital signal processing, which is capable of up to mHz or higher frequency resolutions (for GHz signal). The frequency discrimination via our method is comparable to that of the Ramsey fringes method, and the working range is no longer limited by the width of line shape. This enables us to achieve an atomic clock by actively compensating the frequency shift, which eliminates the need for a phase locking loop, and broadens the working range with increasing reliability. This novel scheme could be extended to the optical frequency region, implying possible future applications in optical atomic clocks, optical frequency comb, atomic spectroscopy and other related researches.

DOI
10.1109/fcs.2015.7138883

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We have demonstrated an atomic frequency micrometer based on the coherent population beating phenomenon, which enables us to obtain the beat frequency between the measured signal and the atomic transition frequency. The beat frequency and its fluctuations are detected and accurately measured through digital signal processing, which is capable of up to mHz or higher frequency resolutions (for GHz signal). The frequency discrimination via our method is comparable to that of the Ramsey fringes method, and the working range is no longer limited by the width of line shape. This enables us to achieve an atomic clock by actively compensating the frequency shift, which eliminates the need for a phase locking loop, and broadens the working range with increasing reliability. This novel scheme could be extended to the optical frequency region, implying possible future applications in optical atomic clocks, optical frequency comb, atomic spectroscopy and other related researches.
We demonstrated an atomic clock based on coherent population beating (CPB). CPB occurs in typical Λ system, which enables us to obtain the beat frequency of the radio frequency for laser modulation and the hyperfine splitting. The beat frequency and its fluctuation is detected and accurately measured through digitized processing for compensating the shift of the radio frequency. It enables us to achieve a standard frequency which directly reference to the hyperfine transition. In our preliminary experiment an Allan Deviation of 3e-12 at 1000s is observed. CPB atomic clock eliminates the phase locking loop, and can be easily digitized and integrated.
An accurate frequency control method and atomic clock based on the coherent population beating (CPB) phenomenon is implemented. In this scheme, the frequency difference of an rf and an atomic transition frequency can be digitally obtained by measuring the CPB oscillation frequency. The frequency measurement resolution of several milli-hertz can be achieved by using a 10 MHz oven controlled crystal oscillator as the reference. The expression of the Allan deviation of the CPB clock is theoretically deduced and it is revealed that the Allan deviation is inversely proportional to the signal-to-noise ratio and proportional to the line-width of coherent population trapping spectrum. We also approve that the CPB atomic clock has a large toleration of the drift of the local oscillator. In our CPB experimental system, a frequency instability of 3.0 × 10 −12 at 1000s is observed. The important feature of high frequency measurement resolution of the CPB method may also be used in magnetometers, atomic spectroscopy, and other related research.
We demonstrated a frequency standard based on a detuned coherent population beating phenomenon. In this phenomenon, the beat frequency of the radio frequency for laser modulation and the hyperfine splitting can be obtained by digital signal processing technology. After analyzing the spectrum of the beat frequency, the fluctuation information is obtained and applied to compensate for the frequency shift to generate the standard frequency by the digital synthesis method. Frequency instability of 2.6 × 10 12 at 1000 s is observed in our preliminary experiment. By eliminating the phase-locking loop, the method will enable us to achieve a full-digital frequency standard with remarkable stability.
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Sophisticated Ramsey-based interrogation protocols using composite laser pulse sequences have been recently proposed to provide next-generation high-precision atomic clocks with a near perfect elimination of frequency shifts induced during the atom-probing field interaction. We propose here a simple alternative approach to the autobalanced Ramsey interrogation protocol and demonstrate its application to a cold-atom microwave clock based on coherent population trapping (CPT). The main originality of the method, based on two consecutive Ramsey sequences with different dark periods, is to sample the central Ramsey fringes with frequency jumps finely adjusted by an additional frequency-displacement concomitant parameter, scaling as the inverse of the dark period. The advantage of this displaced frequency-jump Ramsey method is that the local oscillator (LO) frequency is used as a single physical variable to control both servo loops of the sequence, simplifying its implementation and avoiding noise associated with controlling the LO phase. When tested using a CPT cold-atom clock, the DFJR scheme reduces the sensitivity of the clock frequency to variations of the light shifts by more than an order of magnitude compared with the standard Ramsey interrogation. This simple method can be applied in a wide variety of Ramsey-spectroscopy based applications including frequency metrology with CPT-based and optical atomic clocks, mass spectrometry, and precision spectroscopy.
During precision measurement, the quantity being measured is often perturbed by the measurement process itself. This includes precision frequency measurements for atomic-clock applications using Ramsey spectroscopy. To eliminate probe-induced perturbations, a generalized method is developed in which the frequency control loop is augmented with a second control loop that feeds back to a secondary clock variable, and can perfectly compensate for perturbations of the clock frequency caused by the measurements in the first loop. This universal technique can be used for atomic clocks, high-resolution molecular spectroscopy, two-photon probing schemes, Ramsey mass spectrometry, and beyond.