Impact of static-magnetic-field-gradients on relaxation times in a Rb vapor cell

Abstract

We apply an innovative method called Optically-Detected Spin-Echo to measure the intrinsic coherence relaxation time in the buffer-gas vapor cell of a Rb atomic clock [1]. This method suppresses the influence of static-magnetic-field-gradients across the cell which is a source of relaxation processes. Such studies are of interest for high-performance Rb atomic clocks, where both intrinsic population and coherence relaxation times (T 1 and T 2 , respectively) of the “clock transition” (52S 1/2 |F g = 1, m F = 0〉 ↔ |F g = 2, m F = 0〉) are relevant.