1st Edition

The Quantum Physics of Atomic Frequency Standards Recent Developments

By Jacques Vanier, Cipriana Tomescu Copyright 2016
    486 Pages 183 B/W Illustrations
    by CRC Press

    486 Pages 183 B/W Illustrations
    by CRC Press

    Up-to-Date Coverage of Stable and Accurate Frequency Standards

    The Quantum Physics of Atomic Frequency Standards: Recent Developments covers advances in atomic frequency standards (atomic clocks) from the last several decades. It explains the use of various techniques, such as laser optical pumping, coherent population trapping, laser cooling, and electromagnetic and optical trapping, in the implementation of classical microwave and optical atomic frequency standards.

    The book first discusses improvements to conventional atomic frequency standards, highlighting the main limitations of those frequency standards and the physical basis of the limitations. It then describes how advances in the theory and applications of atomic physics have opened new avenues in frequency standards. The authors go on to explore the research and development of new microwave and optical frequency standards before presenting the results in frequency stability and accuracy achieved with these new frequency standards. They also illustrate the application of atomic clocks in metrology, telecommunications, navigation, and other areas and give some insight into future work.

    Building on the success of the previous two volumes, this up-to-date, in-depth book examines the vast improvements to atomic clocks that have occurred in the last 25 years. The improved stability and accuracy enable the verification of physical concepts used in fundamental theories, such as relativity, as well as the stability of fundamental constants intrinsic to those theories.

    Microwave Atomic Frequency Standards: Review and Recent Developments
    Classical Atomic Frequency Standards
    Other Atomic Microwave Frequency Standards
    On the Limits of Classical Microwave Atomic Frequency Standards
    Appendices

    Recent Advances in Atomic Physics That Have Impact on Atomic Frequency Standards Development
    Solid-State Diode Laser
    Control of Wavelength and Spectral Width of Laser Diodes
    Laser Optical Pumping
    Coherent Population Trapping
    Laser Cooling of Atoms
    Appendix

    Microwave Frequency Standards Using New Physics
    Cs Beam Frequency Standard
    Atomic Fountain Approach
    Isotropic Cooling Approach
    Room Temperature Rb Standard Approach Using Laser Optical Pumping
    CPT Approach
    Laser-Cooled Microwave Ion Clocks
    Appendices

    Optical Frequency Standards
    Early Approach Using Absorption Cells
    Some Basic Ideas
    MOT Approach
    Single Ion Optical Clocks
    Optical Lattice Neutral Atoms Clock
    Frequency Measurement of Optical Clocks

    Summary, Conclusion, and Reflections
    Accuracy and Frequency Stability
    Selected Applications of Atomic Frequency Standards
    Last Reflections

    Biography

    Jacques Vanier is an adjunct professor in the Physics Department at the University of Montreal. He is a fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, the American Physical Society, and the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers. He has written more than 120 journal articles and proceedings papers and is the author of several books on masers, lasers, and atomic clocks. His research work is oriented toward the understanding and application of the quantum electronics phenomena.

    Cipriana Tomescu is an invited researcher in the Physics Department at the University of Montreal. She is the author of numerous articles in scientific journals and conference proceedings. Her research involves state-of-the-art atomic frequency standards and H masers.

    "The Quantum Physics of Atomic Frequency Standards: Recent Developments may be considered a basic textbook in the field of atomic clocks. It updates the previous two volumes with the new achievements in that field. This third volume describes, in fact, the results obtained in the past 25 years within the area of atom laser cooling and trapping techniques and with the full exploitation of laser coherently induced phenomena. The former refers in particular to atomic fountains, optical lattice clocks, and ion clocks, while the latter considers the optically pumped and coherent population-trapping–based clocks. The book is not a simple review of the applications of the above-mentioned new techniques but reports as well their basic operating principles in continuity with the first two volumes, making it suitable as a textbook at the PhD level and very useful for researchers in the atomic frequency standards field. I fully endorse this book, being sure of its future success in the time and frequency community."
    —Aldo Godone, National Institute for Metrological Research of Italy

    "Despite the fact that accurate and stable frequency references are critical for abundant commercial, scientific, and military applications, no comprehensive collection of the achievements over the last 25 years has been published. Therefore, Vanier and Tomescu’s book is really going to fill a gap and its acquisition is a must for technical libraries and research groups working in the field. The reader will learn the essentials on all kinds of atomic frequency standards, commercial and research-grade, in the microwave and the optical frequency domains. … The application of laser technology in optical frequency standards and optical frequency measurements has been covered well by the authors. … a book that is worth being read and that can help beginners become experts."
    —Andreas Bauch, Physicist, Head of Time Dissemination Working Group, Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt, Braunschweig, Germany