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IEEE Transactions on Ultrasonics Ferroelectrics and Frequency Control

Exploring the Use of Ramsey-CPT Spectroscopy for a Microcell-Based Atomic Clock

Clément Carlé, Michael Petersen, Nicolas Passilly, Moustafa Abdel Hafiz, Emeric de Clercq, Rodolphe Boudot

Published Jun 2, 2021• 17 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We investigate the application of Ramsey spectroscopy for the development of a microcell atomic clock based on coherent population trapping (CPT). The dependence of the central Ramsey-CPT fringe properties on key experimental parameters is first studied for optimization of the clock’s short-term frequency stability. The sensitivity of the clock frequency to light-shift effects is then studied. In comparison with the continuous-wave (CW) regime case, the sensitivity of the clock frequency to laser power variations is reduced by a factor up to 14 and 40.3 for dark times of 150 and$450~\mu \text{s}$, respectively, at the expense of intensity 3.75 times higher for short-term stability optimization. The dependence of the clock frequency on the microwave power is also reduced in the Ramsey case. We demonstrate that the Ramsey-CPT interrogation improves the clock Allan deviation for averaging times higher than 100 s. With a dark time of$450~\mu \text{s}$, a clock fractional frequency stability of$3.8 \times 10^{-12}$at 104s is obtained, in comparison with the level of$8\times 10^{-11}$obtained in the standard CW case, in similar environmental conditions. These results demonstrate that Ramsey-based interrogation protocols might be an attractive approach for the development of chip-scale atomic clocks (CSACs) with enhanced mid- and long-term stability.

DOI
10.1109/tuffc.2021.3085249

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Scientific Reports•Oct 15, 2025•1 citation
We investigate the application of Ramsey spectroscopy for the development of a microcell atomic clock based on coherent population trapping (CPT). The dependence of the central Ramsey-CPT fringe properties on key experimental parameters is first studied for optimization of the clock’s short-term frequency stability. The sensitivity of the clock frequency to light-shift effects is then studied. In comparison with the continuous-wave (CW) regime case, the sensitivity of the clock frequency to laser power variations is reduced by a factor up to 14 and 40.3 for dark times of 150 and450 μs450~\mu \text{s}450 μs, respectively, at the expense of intensity 3.75 times higher for short-term stability optimization. The dependence of the clock frequency on the microwave power is also reduced in the Ramsey case. We demonstrate that the Ramsey-CPT interrogation improves the clock Allan deviation for averaging times higher than 100 s. With a dark time of450 μs450~\mu \text{s}450 μs, a clock fractional frequency stability of3.8×10−123.8 \times 10^{-12}3.8×10−12at 104s is obtained, in comparison with the level of8×10−118\times 10^{-11}8×10−11obtained in the standard CW case, in similar environmental conditions. These results demonstrate that Ramsey-based interrogation protocols might be an attractive approach for the development of chip-scale atomic clocks (CSACs) with enhanced mid- and long-term stability.
Light shifts are known to be an important limitation to the mid- and long-term fractional frequency stability of different types of atomic clocks. In this article, we demonstrate the experimental implementation of an anti-light-shift interrogation protocol onto a continuous-wave (cw) microcell atomic clock based on coherent population trapping (CPT). The method, inspired by the autobalanced Ramsey spectroscopy technique demonstrated in pulsed atomic clocks, consists in the extraction of atomic based information from two successive light-shifted clock frequencies obtained at two different laser-power values. Two error signals, computed from the linear combination of signals acquired along a symmetric sequence, are managed in a dual-loop configuration to generate a clock frequency free from light shift. Using this method, the sensitivity of the clock frequency to both laser-power and microwave-power variations can be reduced by more than an order of magnitude compared to normal operation. In the present experiment, the consideration of the nonlinear light-shift dependence allows enhancement of the light-shift mitigation. The implemented technique allows an improvement of the clock Allan deviation for time scales higher than 1000 s. This method can be applied in various kinds of atomic clocks such as CPT-based atomic clocks, double-resonance Rb\mathrm{Rb}Rb clocks, or cell-stabilized lasers.
The mid-term fractional frequency stability of miniaturized atomic clocks can be limited by light-shift effects. In this Letter, we demonstrate the implementation of a symmetric auto-balanced Ramsey (SABR) interrogation sequence in a microcell-based atomic clock based on coherent population trapping. Using this advanced protocol, the sensitivity of the clock frequency to laser power, microwave power, and laser frequency variations is reduced, at least by one order of magnitude, in comparison with continuous-wave or Ramsey interrogation schemes. Light-shift mitigation obtained with the SABR sequence benefits greatly to the clock Allan deviation for integration times between 102 and 105 s. These results demonstrate that such interrogation techniques are of interest to enhance the timekeeping performance of chip-scale atomic clocks.
We report on the operation of a coherent population trapping (CPT) microcell atomic clock using a pulsed Ramsey-like interrogation. The Ramsey-CPT sequence, defined by two-step optical pulses separated by a free-evolution dark time, is produced by switching on and off the output power of a low-power vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser, through direct modulation of its driving current. High-contrast and narrow Ramsey-CPT fringes are detected without the use of any external optical modulator stage. We demonstrate closed-loop operation of the clock based on high-speed digital signal processing implemented in a field programmable gate array board. The clock's short-term fractional frequency stability is 1.3 × 10−10τ−1/2 until 2000 s. A power light-shift coefficient of 8 × 10−11/μW, in relative value, is obtained for a dark time of 150 μs. This value is about ten times lower than in the continuous regime. These results show the feasibility of fully integrated atomic clocks based on Ramsey spectroscopy, which could provide enhanced long-term stability.
We report on the mid-term stability progress of a table-top coherent population trapping (CPT) microcell atomic clock, previously limited by light-shift effects and variations of the cell's inner atmosphere. The light-shift contribution is now mitigated through the use of a pulsed symmetric auto-balanced Ramsey (SABR) interrogation technique, combined with setup temperature, laser power, and microwave power stabilization. In addition, Ne buffer gas pressure variations in the cell are now greatly reduced through the use of a micro-fabricated cell built with low permeation alumino-silicate glass (ASG) windows. Combining these approaches, the clock Allan deviation is measured to be 1.4 × 10 −12 at 10 5 s. This stability level at one day is competitive with the best current microwave microcell-based atomic clocks.
We demonstrate a high-performance coherent-population-trapping (CPT) Cs vapor cell atomic clock using the push-pull optical pumping technique in the pulsed regime, allowing the detection of high-contrast and narrow Ramsey-CPT fringes. The impact of several experimental parameters onto the clock resonance and short-term fractional frequency stability, including the laser power, the cell temperature, and the Ramsey sequence parameters, has been investigated. We observe and explain the existence of a slight dependence on laser power of the central Ramsey-CPT fringe line-width in the pulsed regime. We report also that the central fringe line-width is commonly narrower than the expected Ramsey line-width given by 1/(2TR), with TR the free-evolution time, for short values of TR. The clock demonstrates a short-term fractional frequency stability at the level of 2.3×10−13 τ−1/2 up to 100 s averaging time, mainly limited by the laser amplitude modulation noise. Comparable performances are obtained in the conventional continuous wave regime, with the use of an additional laser power stabilization setup. The pulsed interaction allows to reduce significantly the clock frequency sensitivity to laser power variations, especially for high values of TR. This pulsed CPT clock, ranking among the best microwave vapor cell atomic frequency standards, could find applications in telecommunication, instrumentation, defense or satellite-based navigation systems.
We present a coherent-population trapping (CPT) microcell atomic clock using symmetric auto-balanced Ramsey (SABR) spectroscopy. The pulsed SABR sequence is applied through direct current-based power modulation of the vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser, eliminating the need for an external optical shutter and enabling compatibility with fully-integrated clocks. The sequence is controlled by a single FPGA-based digital electronics board. A key aspect of proper clock operation was the implementation of a real-time tracking of the atomic signal detection window. The clock frequency dependence on laser power, microwave power, laser frequency, and timing of the detection window has been measured, obtaining sensitivity coefficients lower than those obtained with Ramsey-CPT spectroscopy. The Allan deviation of the SABR-CPT clock, based on a microfabricated cell with low-permeation glass windows, is 8 × 10 −10 at 1 s and averages down in the 10 −12 range at 1 day. These results might stimulate the development of chip-scale atomic clocks using Ramsey-based sequences, with reduced light-shift sensitivity, and enhanced long-term stability performances.