Design and test of the microwave cavity in an optically-pumped Rubidium beam frequency standard**Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 11174015).

Abstract

We are developing a compact rubidium atomic beam frequency standard with optical pumping and detection. The cavity for microwave interrogation is an important part of the clock. The cavity in our design is a Ramsey-type, E-bend one, which is the same as the conventional method in most cesium beam clocks. Requirements for the design are proposed based on the frequency shift associated with the cavity. The basic structure of the cavity is given by theoretical analysis and detailed dimensions are determined by means of electromagnetic field simulation with the help of commercial software. The cavity is manufactured and fabricated successfully. The preliminary test result of the cavity is given, which is in good agreement with the simulation. The resonant frequency is 6.835 GHz, equal to the clock transition frequency of 87Rb, and the loaded quality factor is 500. These values are adjustable with posts outside the cavity. Estimations on the Ramsey line width and several frequency shifts are made.