Atomic clocks constitute a fundamental tool for time and frequency metrology and their application is widespread in many technological fields. In particular, the International System of units (SI) defines the second on a microwave transition of Caesium atoms. The realization is made by clocks reaching uncertainties of few parts in 10^−16, making the second to be the quantity realized with the smallest uncertainty in the SI. However, a new generation of atomic clocks, called optical clocks, have already demonstrated to surpass Caesium standards both in accuracy and stability. The research performed during my PhD activity has been focused on the development and characterization of Ytterbium (Yb) optical lattice clocks. These systems operate with a large number of ultra-cold neutral atoms having a clock transition in the visible region of the electromagnetic spectrum. The atomic sample is trapped in an periodical optical potential called optical lattice that gives the advantage to interrogate many quantum absorbers for an extended time, with small perturbations, allowing to achieve an unprecedented stability and accuracy. The main experimental work has been carried out in the laboratories of the Istituto Nazionale di Ricerca Metrologica (INRIM) in Turin, where several atomic clocks are present including the Italian primary frequency standard, the Caesium fountain ITCsF2, and where an Yb optical lattice clock is currently being developed. This thesis describes the functioning of the system along with the full characterization of systematic effects, the complete uncertainty budget and its first absolute frequency measurement against the primary frequency standard. The clock exhibited an accuracy of 1.6 × 10^−16 and the comparison with the Cs fountain resulted in a frequency of f171Yb = 518 295 836 590 863.59(31) Hz, limited by the fountain uncertainty. This measurement is in agreement with the ytterbium frequency recommended as a secondary representation of the second in the SI and constitutes the first measurement of a Yb clock in Europe and the second one in the world against a primary frequency standard. Several upgrades have been applied after the absolute measurement. In particular, the design and realization a system capable to frequency stabilize several lasers on a single optical cavity is illustrated. This cavity has been implemented to lock the lasers used to cool and trap the atomic sample at 399, 556 and 759nm using the offset sideband locking technique, a modified version of the Pound–Drever–Hall method that gives an extended frequency tunability. The system proved to be an easy-to-use and reliable tool for the experimental activity showing a linewidth below 300 Hz at 556nm, which is the wavelength that requires the most stringent performance, and a long term drift below 20 kHz per day at 759nm. That is suitable for operating the lattice laser with a light shift uncertainty below 1 × 10−18. During my PhD I have been guest researcher at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) of Boulder, Colorado, for nine months in 2016. In these laboratories two Yb optical lattice clocks are operative. I worked on the instability measurement of a composite system exploiting the two clocks to suppress the Dick effect, called zero-dead-time (ZDT) clock, which demonstrated a fractional instability of 3 × 10−17 at 1s. The two clocks can also be operated to extend the interrogation time obtaining a spectroscopic feature after 4 s of 120(20)mHz corresponding to a quality factor Q > 4 × 10^15. I also worked on the characterization of several systematic shifts that allowed to complete the uncertainty budget of the clocks at 1.6 × 10^−18. In particular, I contributed to the characterization of lattice light shifts considering the effect of atomic sample temperature and the identification of a metrological regime called operational magic frequency where frequency shifts are insensitive to changes in trap depth.
Atomic clocks constitute a fundamental tool for time and frequency metrology and their application is widespread in many technological fields. In particular, the International System of units (SI) defines the second on a microwave transition of Caesium atoms. The realization is made by clocks reaching uncertainties of few parts in 10^−16, making the second to be the quantity realized with the smallest uncertainty in the SI. However, a new generation of atomic clocks, called optical clocks, have already demonstrated to surpass Caesium standards both in accuracy and stability. The research performed during my PhD activity has been focused on the development and characterization of Ytterbium (Yb) optical lattice clocks. These systems operate with a large number of ultra-cold neutral atoms having a clock transition in the visible region of the electromagnetic spectrum. The atomic sample is trapped in an periodical optical potential called optical lattice that gives the advantage to interrogate many quantum absorbers for an extended time, with small perturbations, allowing to achieve an unprecedented stability and accuracy. The main experimental work has been carried out in the laboratories of the Istituto Nazionale di Ricerca Metrologica (INRIM) in Turin, where several atomic clocks are present including the Italian primary frequency standard, the Caesium fountain ITCsF2, and where an Yb optical lattice clock is currently being developed. This thesis describes the functioning of the system along with the full characterization of systematic effects, the complete uncertainty budget and its first absolute frequency measurement against the primary frequency standard. The clock exhibited an accuracy of 1.6 × 10^−16 and the comparison with the Cs fountain resulted in a frequency of f171Yb = 518 295 836 590 863.59(31) Hz, limited by the fountain uncertainty. This measurement is in agreement with the ytterbium frequency recommended as a secondary representation of the second in the SI and constitutes the first measurement of a Yb clock in Europe and the second one in the world against a primary frequency standard. Several upgrades have been applied after the absolute measurement. In particular, the design and realization a system capable to frequency stabilize several lasers on a single optical cavity is illustrated. This cavity has been implemented to lock the lasers used to cool and trap the atomic sample at 399, 556 and 759nm using the offset sideband locking technique, a modified version of the Pound–Drever–Hall method that gives an extended frequency tunability. The system proved to be an easy-to-use and reliable tool for the experimental activity showing a linewidth below 300 Hz at 556nm, which is the wavelength that requires the most stringent performance, and a long term drift below 20 kHz per day at 759nm. That is suitable for operating the lattice laser with a light shift uncertainty below 1 × 10−18. During my PhD I have been guest researcher at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) of Boulder, Colorado, for nine months in 2016. In these laboratories two Yb optical lattice clocks are operative. I worked on the instability measurement of a composite system exploiting the two clocks to suppress the Dick effect, called zero-dead-time (ZDT) clock, which demonstrated a fractional instability of 3 × 10−17 at 1s. The two clocks can also be operated to extend the interrogation time obtaining a spectroscopic feature after 4 s of 120(20)mHz corresponding to a quality factor Q > 4 × 10^15. I also worked on the characterization of several systematic shifts that allowed to complete the uncertainty budget of the clocks at 1.6 × 10^−18. In particular, I contributed to the characterization of lattice light shifts considering the effect of atomic sample temperature and the identification of a metrological regime called operational magic frequency where frequency shifts are insensitive to changes in trap depth.
The work described in this thesis was done at the Istituto Nazionale di Ricerca Metrologica (I.N.Ri.M.), in the optic division, within the Ph.D. of Metrology of the Politecnico di Torino. My work consisted in developing a new generation optical frequency standard based on Ytterbium atoms: the goal of this project is to realize a clock whose performance overcomes the ones of the standard which actually realizes the Second, the atomic Cesium fountain. This means realizes an apparatus which shows stability and accuracy better then the fountain ones: a possible way adopted in several new generation clock is using optical transitions, because they offer an higher quality factor of the clock transition itself, which means a better stability and the possibility to reach the 10^-17 level in the global accuracy of the clock. The fundamental idea of a clock is to realize as close as possible the basic idea under the actual definition of the Second, that is to fix the unit if time with a particular atomic transition, when the atom is completely unperturbed. Accomplishing this prescription means a lot of work in cooling down the atoms until the 10^-6 K regime using laser cooling techniques, developing a trap where atoms can be excited by the clock laser (the optical lattice) and of course a very careful frequency and amplitude stabilization of the clock laser itself is needed to reach our goal. The work described in this thesis regards the development of the two cooling stages of the Yb atoms and it is presented as follows. Chapter 1 explains with more details why an optical clock is needed to improve the accuracy of the actual realization of the Second, then describing the theoretical framework in which the clock will be developed. Chapter 2 contains a description of the experimental apparatus used, with more attention on the instrumentation related to the laser cooling of the atoms. Chapter 3 is about the characterization of the first cooling stage, both in a static and in a dynamic way, with some attention on the theoretical model developed to perform both the characterizations. Chapter 4 focuses on the development of the second cooling stage and it describes the actual state of the art of this stage
An optical lattice clock probes a spectrally narrow electronic transition in an ensemble of optically trapped, laser-cooled atoms, for use as a time and frequency standard. To date, several lattice clocks have been demonstrated with superior stability and accuracy compared to primary frequency standards based on microwave transitions. Yet, the question of which atomic system (including the element and isotope) performs best as a lattice clock remains unsettled. This thesis describes the first detailed investigation of an optical lattice clock using a spin-1/2 isotope of the ytterbium atom. A spin-1/2 system possesses several advantages over higher-spin systems, including a simplified level structure (allowing for straightforward manipulation of the nuclear spin state) and the absence of any tensor light shift from the confining optical lattice. Moreover, the ytterbium atom (Yb) stands among the leading lattice clock candidates, offering a high-performance optical clock with some degree of experimental simplicity. The frequency stability of the Yb clock is highlighted by resolving an ultra-narrow clock spectrum with a full-width at half-maximum of 1 Hz, corresponding to a record quality factor Q = ν0/Δν = 5 × 1014. Moreover, this system can be highly accurate, which is demonstrated by characterizing the Yb clock frequency at the 3 × 10-16 level of fractional uncertainty, with further progress toward a ten-fold improvement also presented. To reach this low level of uncertainty required careful consideration of important systematic errors, including the identification of the Stark-canceling wavelength, where the clock’s sensitivity to the lattice intensity is minimized, a precise determination of the static polarizability of the clock transition, and the measurement and control of atom-atom collisions.
The primary frequency and time standard, defined via a transition frequency of caesium-133, is realized by microwave clocks reaching relative uncertainties in the 10−^16 level. This performance has been surpassed by state-of-the-art lattice clocks, with transition frequencies in the optical regime, leading to two orders of magnitude lower uncertainties. The key to this performance is the confinement in the Lamb-Dicke regime at the magic wavelength enabling a Doppler- and recoil-free spectroscopy with a first-order suppressed AC Stark shift. In atomic clocks, several effects contribute to the uncertainty of the transition frequency. Through continuous global characterization efforts, the individual uncertainty of these effects have been subsequently reduced. Yet one effect, namely the frequency shift induced by blackbody radiation has been identified as a dominant contribution which is difficult to overcome by technical means. In this regard, magnesium-24 excels as a species of choice as its blackbody radiation sensitivity is one order of magnitude lower than in the most frequently used atomic clock species. Furthermore, magnesium offers a relatively simple electronic structure which enables theoretical support through high-precision calculations. This thesis features the first characterization of a magnesium optical lattice clock operating at the magic wavelength. The characterization of the magnesium frequency standard presented in this thesis depends essentially on the resolution of the transition linewidth, which could be reduced from kHz range to 51(3) Hz in a complementing work. The realization of a transition linewidth with a quality factor of Q = 1.3 × 10^13 has contributed to an improved determination of the magic wavelength within this thesis to 468.4106(2) nm. Compared to earlier work, this represents an improvement of two orders of magnitude. Furthermore, the lower transition linewidth also allowed the first observation of the probe AC Stark shift and thus the first characterization of effects in the lattice that falsify the frequency of the trapped magnesium atoms. Overall, the relative uncertainty of the frequency-related effects influencing the clock transition could be determined to be 7.1 × 10^−15. The dominant contributions can be assigned to tunneling broadening and the lattice and probe AC Stark effects, induced by the probe and lattice light. All these effects can be traced back to technical limitations and are part of future work. Following the characterization, a first frequency comparison between the magnesium lattice clock against the primary frequency standard as well as the ytterbium ion clock at the PTB has been performed and thus a first realization of a lattice based frequency standard with magnesium atoms was demonstrated. The determined transition frequency of 655 058 646 681 864.1(5.3) Hz complies with former measurements. The primary frequency and time standard, defined via a transition frequency of caesium-133, is realized by microwave clocks reaching relative uncertainties in the 10^−16 level. This performance has been surpassed by state-of-the-art lattice clocks, with transition frequencies in the optical regime, leading to two orders of magnitude lower uncertainties. The key to this performance is the confinement in the Lamb-Dicke regime at the magic wavelength enabling a Doppler- and recoil-free spectroscopy with a first-order suppressed AC Stark shift. In atomic clocks, several effects contribute to the uncertainty of the transition frequency. Through continuous global characterization efforts, the individual uncertainty of these effects have been subsequently reduced. Yet one effect, namely the frequency shift induced by blackbody radiation has been identified as a dominant contribution which is difficult to overcome by technical means. In this regard, magnesium-24 excels as a species of choice as its blackbody radiation sensitivity is one order of magnitude lower than in the most frequently used atomic clock species. Furthermore, magnesium offers a relatively simple electronic structure which enables theoretical support through high-precision calculations. This thesis features the first characterization of a magnesium optical lattice clock operating at the magic wavelength. The characterization of the magnesium frequency standard presented in this thesis depends essentially on the resolution of the transition linewidth, which could be reduced from kHz range to 51(3) Hz in a complementing work. The realization of a transition linewidth with a quality factor of Q = 1.3 × 10^13 has contributed to an improved determination of the magic wavelength within this thesis to 468.4106(2) nm. Compared to earlier work, this represents an improvement of two orders of magnitude. Furthermore, the lower transition linewidth also allowed the first observation of the probe AC Stark shift and thus the first characterization of effects in the lattice that falsify the frequency of the trapped magnesium atoms. Overall, the relative uncertainty of the frequency-related effects influencing the clock transition could be determined to be 7.1 × 10^−15. The dominant contributions can be assigned to tunneling broadening and the lattice and probe AC Stark effects, induced by the probe and lattice light. All these effects can be traced back to technical limitations and are part of future work. Following the characterization, a first frequency comparison between the magnesium lattice clock against the primary frequency standard as well as the ytterbium ion clock at the PTB has been performed and thus a first realization of a lattice based frequency standard with magnesium atoms was demonstrated. The determined transition frequency of 655 058 646 681 864.1(5.3) Hz complies with former measurements.
Accurate time keeping is critical to the function and advancement of many human endeavours. Atomic clocks based on a microwave transition in atomic Cs have served as primary frequency standards to realise the SI second since their formal adoption in 1967. State-of-the-art, laser cooled, Cs fountains now routinely operate with fractional frequency uncertainties below the 10⁻¹⁵ level in laboratories throughout the world. Over the last decade, efforts to build frequency standards based on optical transitions have come to fruition and potential inaccuracies below the 10⁻¹⁷ level have been demonstrated. Such standards point to the future of time keeping and much development is being pursued to realise the potential of these 'next generation' optical clocks. One such approach, on which this work focusses, relies on a 'magic' wavelength optical lattice trap to provide (almost) Doppler- and recoil-free confinement of atoms during clock interrogation. At this 'magic' wavelength, light induced perturbation of the clock states is equal and so cancels precisely. This thesis describes the design and implementation of an optical lattice frequency standard apparatus based on 88Sr held in a 1D optical lattice. A review of the development of atomic frequency metrology is given from a historical viewpoint and the technology and limitations of current methods discussed. To tackle the blackbody radiation shift, which currently presents the greatest limitation to the Sr lattice clock, imposing at the 10⁻¹⁶ level, a scheme to measure the blackbody radiation shift coefficient at the 10⁻¹⁷ level is developed. Techniques to laser cool and trap atomic strontium are described and the implementation detailed. All laser systems required for clock operation are described including the design and implementation of extended-cavity diode lasers for precision spectroscopy. Details relevant to the eventual operation of the apparatus are discussed.
Master thesis in physics at University of Torino. ABSTRACT :Optical lattice clocks occupy a very important position in metrological research. Diffused worldwide, they are a strong candidate for a future redefinition of the second of the International System of Units (SI) and thanks to their extremely small fractional uncertainty about 10−18 they are involved in fundamental physics experiments, for example in the field of general relativity. In a optical clock, the lattice is used to trap ultracold atoms and it is realized with a retro-reflected laser tuned on magic wavelength to reduce perturbations on the clock transition. An optical lattice is generated usually starting by a titanium:sapphire laser: its main qualities are high output power and narrow linewidth, but it is delicate and difficult to use so its application in new kinds of atomic clocks, such as transportable or spacial, is not strongly recommended. Replacing it with an amplified laser diode would be preferable because these instruments are better for cost, reliability, size and weight, so suitable for applications out of laboratory, but at the same time present the problem of spectral purity as they have a not negligible amplified spontaneous emission (ASE): this phenomenon produces a broad spectrum detuned from magic wavelength inducing a perturbation on the clock transition. In my thesis I investigated experimentally the possibility to generate an optical lattice starting from an amplified laser diode emitting at 759.35 nm, ytterbium magic wavelength, and I applied the laser system that I developed on the atomic clock IT-Yb1 at Istituto Nazionale di Ricerca Metrologica (INRiM) located in Torino. The target of this work is to achieve fractional uncertainty due to ASE below 10−18, making the performances of the two different lasers sources equivalent. First, I calculated the theoretical model of the light shift induced by the lattice on the clock transition between ytterbium atomic states 1S0 →3 P0, comparing it with experimental results and I applied it to estimate ASE contribution to lattice shift. In the experimental part of this work I realized an optical system to study amplified laser diode emission and manipulate laser beam to obtain a good lattice from this laser source, filtering ASE with a volume Bragg grating and controlling power with an acousto optic modulator. Moreover I studied ASE spectral distribution in different conditions and its interaction with optical elements. Next studies foresee to measure experimentally with IT-Yb1 the shift induced by the laser system that I realized to calculate its uncertainty contribution and compare this result with the one obtained with a titanium:sapphire laser. This work will be useful to the development of compact or transportable atomic clocks based exclusively on semiconductor lasers with applications in the generation of optical timescales, travelling optical standards and the measurements of Earth gravitational redshift.
We present an optical lattice clock based on ytterbium 171Yb atoms developed in the laboratories of INRIM. In the experiment, we cool and trap ytterbium atoms in a two stage magneto-optical trap (MOT) (at 399nm and 556nm for the first and second stage, respectively). Atoms are then transferred in a horizontal, one-dimensional optical lattice at the magic wavelength (759 nm). Here the clock transition at 578nm is probed by a laser stabilized on an ultra-stable cavity. We describe the generation of all the laser sources, the physic package and the operation of the clock. Lasers at 399 nm, 556nm and 578nm are obtained, with different techniques, using non-linear crystals starting from infrared sources. The clock laser is stabilized using a high finesse notched ULE cavity. The lattice is made with a titanium-sapphire laser. The aluminum vacuum chamber is designed for wide optical access and its temperature is measured by 8 thermistors for blackbody shift evaluation. Our system allows for fast loading of the lattice with 1 × 104atoms trapped in the lattice in 250 ms. We obtained preliminary spectroscopy results and we locked the clock laser to the atomic line. Future perspectives are discussed.