Title :
Precision frequency measurement of the clock transition in a Sr/sup +/ single atom with an ultra-stable diode laser
Author :
Marmet, Louis ; Madej, A.A. ; Siemsen, K.J. ; Bernard, J.E.
Author_Institution :
Inst. for Nat. Meas. Stand., Nat. Res. Council of Canada, Ottawa, Ont., Canada
Abstract :
We are studying a single Sr/sup +/ atom confined in a Paul trap to produce a frequency standard in the visible region of the spectrum. The goal is to excite a clock transition of the ion at 674 nm with a diode laser and measure its absolute frequency. It is only possible to probe the 0.3-Hz transition if the diode laser is extremely stable during the measurement process which in this experiment can take several minutes to complete. Frequency stabilization of the probing laser was achieved with a lock to an ultra-stable Fabry-Perot cavity. The cavity was temperature stabilized and has demonstrated good long term stability.
Keywords :
Fabry-Perot resonators; atomic clocks; frequency measurement; laser cavity resonators; laser frequency stability; measurement by laser beam; measurement standards; semiconductor lasers; strontium; 0.3 Hz; 674 nm; Paul trap; Sr; Sr/sup +/ single atom; absolute frequency; clock transition; diode laser; frequency measurement; frequency standard; ultra-stable diode laser; visible region; Atomic beams; Atomic measurements; Clocks; Diode lasers; Frequency measurement; Laser excitation; Laser stability; Laser transitions; Probes; Strontium;
Conference_Titel :
Precision Electromagnetic Measurements Digest, 1996 Conference on
Conference_Location :
Braunschweig, Germany
Print_ISBN :
0-7803-3376-4
DOI :
10.1109/CPEM.1996.547331
