Observation and Absolute Frequency Measurements of the {sup 1}S{sub 0}-{sup 3}P{sub 0} Optical Clock Transition in Neutral Ytterbium
- National Institute of Standards and Technology, 325 Broadway, Boulder, Colorado 80305 (United States)
We report the direct excitation of the highly forbidden (6s{sup 2}){sup 1}S{sub 0}{r_reversible}(6s6p){sup 3}P{sub 0} optical transition in two odd isotopes of neutral ytterbium. As the excitation laser frequency is scanned, absorption is detected by monitoring the depletion from an atomic cloud at {approx}70 {mu}K in a magneto-optical trap. The measured frequency in {sup 171}Yb (F=1/2) is 518 295 836 591.6{+-}4.4 kHz. The measured frequency in {sup 173}Yb (F=5/2) is 518 294 576 847.6{+-}4.4 kHz. Measurements are made with a femtosecond-laser frequency comb calibrated by the National Institute of Standards and Technology cesium fountain clock and represent nearly a 10{sup 6}-fold reduction in uncertainty. The natural linewidth of these J=0 to J=0 transitions is calculated to be {approx}10 mHz, making them well suited to support a new generation of optical atomic clocks based on confinement in an optical lattice.
- OSTI ID:
- 20699323
- Journal Information:
- Physical Review Letters, Vol. 95, Issue 8; Other Information: DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.95.083003; (c) 2005 American Institute of Physics; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0031-9007
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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