In this paper we report the evaluation of an optical lattice clock based on neutral mercury with a relative uncertainty of 1.7 × 10 − 16 . Comparing this characterized frequency standard to a 133Cs ...atomic fountain we determine the absolute frequency of the 1 S 0 → 3 P 0 transition of 199Hg as Hg = 1128 575 290 808 154.62 Hz 0.19 Hz ( statistical ) 0.38 Hz (systematic), limited solely by the realization of the SI second. Furthermore, by comparing the mercury optical lattice clock to a 87Rb atomic fountain, we determine for the first time to our knowledge the ratio between the 199Hg clock transition and the 87Rb ground state hyperfine transition. Finally we present a direct optical to optical measurement of the 199Hg/87Sr frequency ratio. The obtained value of Hg / Sr = 2.629 314 209 898 909 15 with a fractional uncertainty of 1.8 × 10 − 16 is in excellent agreement with a similar measurement obtained by Yamanaka et al (2015 Phys. Rev. Lett. 114 230801). This makes this frequency ratio one of the few physical quantities agreed upon by different laboratories to this level of uncertainty. Frequency ratio measurements of the kind reported in this paper have a strong impact for frequency metrology and fundamental physics as they can be used to monitor putative variations of fundamental constants.
The agile generation and control of multiple optical frequency modes combined with the realtime processing of multi-mode data provides access to experimentation in domains such as optomechanical ...systems, optical information processing, and multi-mode spectroscopy. The latter, specifically spectroscopy of spectral-hole burning (SHB), has motivated our development of a multi-mode heterodyne laser interferometric scheme centered around a software-defined radio platform for signal generation and processing, with development in an entirely open-source environment. A challenge to SHB is the high level of shot noise due to the laser power constraint imposed by the spectroscopic sample. Here, we have demonstrated the production, detection, and separation of multiple optical frequency modes to the benefit of optical environment sensing for realtime phase noise subtraction as well as shot noise reduction through multi-mode averaging. This has allowed us to achieve improved noise performance in low-optical-power interferometry. Although our target application is laser stabilization via SHB in cryogenic temperature rare-earth doped crystals, these techniques may be employed in a variety of different contexts.
Progress in realizing the SI second had multiple technological impacts and enabled further constraint of theoretical models in fundamental physics. Caesium microwave fountains, realizing best the ...second according to its current definition with a relative uncertainty of 2-4 × 10(-16), have already been overtaken by atomic clocks referenced to an optical transition, which are both more stable and more accurate. Here we present an important step in the direction of a possible new definition of the second. Our system of five clocks connects with an unprecedented consistency the optical and the microwave worlds. For the first time, two state-of-the-art strontium optical lattice clocks are proven to agree within their accuracy budget, with a total uncertainty of 1.5 × 10(-16). Their comparison with three independent caesium fountains shows a degree of accuracy now only limited by the best realizations of the microwave-defined second, at the level of 3.1 × 10(-16).
Frequency-locking a laser to a spectral hole in rare-earth doped crystals at cryogenic temperature has been shown to be a promising alternative to the use of high finesse Fabry-Perot cavities when ...seeking a very high short term stability laser (M. J. Thorpe et al., Nature Photonics 5, 688 (2011)). We demonstrate here a novel technique for achieving such stabilization, based on generating a heterodyne beat-note between a master laser and a slave laser whose dephasing caused by propagation near a spectral hole generate the error signal of the frequency lock. The master laser is far detuned from the center of the inhomogeneous absorption profile, and therefore exhibits only limited interaction with the crystal despite a potentially high optical power. The demodulation and frequency corrections are generated digitally with a hardware and software implementation based on a field-programmable gate array and a Software Defined Radio platform, making it straightforward to address several frequency channels (spectral holes) in parallel.
Leveraging the unrivalled performance of optical clocks as key tools for geo-science, for astronomy and for fundamental physics beyond the standard model requires comparing the frequency of distant ...optical clocks faithfully. Here, we report on the comparison and agreement of two strontium optical clocks at an uncertainty of 5 × 10(-17) via a newly established phase-coherent frequency link connecting Paris and Braunschweig using 1,415 km of telecom fibre. The remote comparison is limited only by the instability and uncertainty of the strontium lattice clocks themselves, with negligible contributions from the optical frequency transfer. A fractional precision of 3 × 10(-17) is reached after only 1,000 s averaging time, which is already 10 times better and more than four orders of magnitude faster than any previous long-distance clock comparison. The capability of performing high resolution international clock comparisons paves the way for a redefinition of the unit of time and an all-optical dissemination of the SI-second.
Optical atomic clocks promise timekeeping at the highest precision and accuracy, owing to their high operating frequencies. Rigorous evaluations of these clocks require direct comparisons between ...them. We have realized a high-performance remote comparison of optical clocks over kilometer-scale urban distances, a key step for development, dissemination, and application of these optical standards. Through this remote comparison and a proper design of lattice-confined neutral atoms for clock operation, we evaluate the uncertainty of a strontium (Sr) optical lattice clock at the 1 x 10(-16) fractional level, surpassing the current best evaluations of cesium (Cs) primary standards. We also report on the observation of density-dependent effects in the spin-polarized fermionic sample and discuss the current limiting effect of blackbody radiation-induced frequency shifts.
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