Centre National De La Recherche Scientifique

Thales

Université De Franche Comte

Rodolphe Boudot

Christophe Gorecki

Bernard Fouilland

Nicolas Passilly

Vincent Maurice

Eric Kroemer

Ravinder Chutani

The invention relates to a process for fabricating a microcell for a caesium atomic micro-clock having an inversion temperature above 80&#xb0; C., comprising a step of generating a caesium vapor by heating a caesium-containing pellet, the buffer gas used containing neon and helium.

Caesium atomic micro-clock microcell buffer gas mixture

The invention relates to an alkali-metal vapor cell, especially for an atomic clock, and to its manufacturing process. The alkali-metal vapor cell is able to be associated with a laser for emitting an external input laser beam and a photodetector for receiving an external output laser beam, and comprises a housing having an upstream optical window and a downstream optical window and forming an optical cavity filled with an alkali-metal vapor such as a caesium-comprising vapor, and micro-optical means arranged in the optical cavity and comprising an upstream optical reflector and a downstream optical reflector for reflecting the laser beam, which reflectors are inclined relative to each other, the upstream reflector being inclined relative to the plane (P) of the upstream window and to the axis of the input laser beam so that the external input laser beam passes through the upstream window in order to form an internal input laser beam, the latter being reflected by the upstream reflector and deviated towards the downstream reflector so as to form an internal intermediate laser beam that is reflected on the downstream reflector and deviated towards the downstream window so as to form an internal output laser beam, the internal output laser beam passing through the downstream window in order to form the external output laser beam.

Alkali-metal vapour cell, especially for an atomic clock, and manufacturing process

Growing community of inventors

Trepot, France

Rodolphe Boudot