Abstract
Chip-scale atomic devices combine elements of precision atomic spectroscopy, silicon micromachining, and advanced diode laser technology to create compact, low-power, and manufacturable instruments with high precision and stability. Microfabricated alkali vapor cells are at the heart of most of these technologies, and the fabrication of these cells is discussed in detail. We review the design, fabrication, and performance of chip-scale atomic clocks, magnetometers, and gyroscopes and discuss many applications in which these novel instruments are being used. Finally, we present prospects for future generations of miniaturized devices, such as photonically integrated systems and manufacturable devices, which may enable embedded absolute measurement of a broad range of physical quantities.
Highlights
Chip-scale atomic devices combine elements of precision atomic spectroscopy, silicon micromachining, and advanced diode laser technology to create compact, low-power, and manufacturable instruments with high precision and stability
Fabrication, and performance of chip-scale atomic clocks, magnetometers, and gyroscopes and discuss many applications in which these novel instruments are being used
Under the assumption that the atomic constants in Eq (1) are not changing, the energy level structure of the hydrogen atom is invariant in space and time and is the same for every hydrogen atom
Summary
Evacuated glass cells containing alkali atoms have been used in atomic spectroscopy as far back as the 1950s. The addition of inert “buffer” gases to the cell can substantially narrow the transition linewidths Gases such as Ne, N2, Ar, and He interact only very weakly with the spin of the alkali atoms and the atoms can undergo many collisions (typically hundreds of thousands) with the buffer gas before the spin depolarizes. For Rb, for example, spin-exchange collisions result in a broadening of the hyperfine transition linewidth of about 700 Hz at a cell temperature of 85 C. Since the collisions between alkali atoms and the buffer gas are electronic in nature, the presence of the buffer gas results in significant homogeneous broadening of the optical transitions, typically by $20 MHz/ Torr.. Collisions of the alkali atoms with the buffer gas result in a net shift of the hyperfine frequency. Which can be important for very high performance or accurate atomic clocks
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