J. Lodewyck

Lattice-Induced Frequency Shifts in Sr Optical Lattice Clocks at the 10{sup -17} Level

We present a comprehensive study of the frequency shifts associated with the lattice potential in a Sr lattice clock by comparing two such clocks with a frequency stability reaching 5×10(-17) after a 1 h integration time. We put the first experimental upper bound on the multipolar M1 and E2 interactions, significantly smaller than the recently predicted theoretical upper limit, and give a 30-fold improved upper limit on the effect of hyperpolarizability. Finally, we report on the first observation of the vector and tensor shifts in a Sr lattice clock. Combining these measurements, we show that all known lattice related perturbations will not affect the clock accuracy down to the 10(-17) level, even for lattices as deep as 150 recoil energies.

Optical to microwave clock frequency ratios with a nearly continuous strontium optical lattice clock

Optical lattice clocks are at the forefront of frequency metrology. Both the instability and systematic uncertainty of these clocks have been reported to be two orders of magnitude smaller than the best microwave clocks. For this reason, a redefinition of the SI second based on optical clocks seems possible in the near future. However, the operation of optical lattice clocks has not yet reached the reliability that microwave clocks have achieved so far. In this paper, we report on the operation of a strontium optical lattice clock that spans several weeks, with more than 80% uptime. We make use of this long integration time to demonstrate a reproducible measurement of frequency ratios between the strontium clock transition and microwave Cs primary and Rb secondary frequency standards.

Polarizabilities of the 87Sr Clock Transition

In this paper, we propose an in-depth review of the vector and tensor polarizabilities of the two energy levels of the 87Sr clock transition whose measurement was reported in [P. G. Westergaard et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 106, 210801 (2011)]. We conduct a theoretical calculation that reproduces the measured coefficients. In addition, we detail the experimental conditions used for their measurement in two Sr optical lattice clocks, and exhibit the quadratic behaviour of the vector and tensor shifts with the depth of the trapping potential and evaluate their impact on the accuracy of the clock.

Quantum key distribution over 25 km with an all-fiber continuous-variable system

We report on the implementation of a reverse-reconciliated coherent-state continuous-variable quantum key distribution system, with which we generated secret keys at a rate of more than 2 kb/s over 25 km of optical fiber. Time multiplexing is used to transmit both the signal and phase reference in the same optical fiber. Our system includes all experimental aspects required for a field implementation of a quantum key distribution setup. Real-time reverse reconciliation is achieved by using fast and efficient low-density parity check error correcting codes.

Experimental realization of an optical second with strontium lattice clocks

Progress in realizing the SI second had multiple technological impacts and enabled further constraint of theoretical models in fundamental physics. Caesium microwave fountains, realizing best the second according to its current definition with a relative uncertainty of 2-4 × 10(-16), have already been overtaken by atomic clocks referenced to an optical transition, which are both more stable and more accurate. Here we present an important step in the direction of a possible new definition of the second. Our system of five clocks connects with an unprecedented consistency the optical and the microwave worlds. For the first time, two state-of-the-art strontium optical lattice clocks are proven to agree within their accuracy budget, with a total uncertainty of 1.5 × 10(-16). Their comparison with three independent caesium fountains shows a degree of accuracy now only limited by the best realizations of the microwave-defined second, at the level of 3.1 × 10(-16).

A clock network for geodesy and fundamental science.

Leveraging the unrivalled performance of optical clocks as key tools for geo-science, for astronomy and for fundamental physics beyond the standard model requires comparing the frequency of distant optical clocks faithfully. Here, we report on the comparison and agreement of two strontium optical clocks at an uncertainty of 5 × 10−17 via a newly established phase-coherent frequency link connecting Paris and Braunschweig using 1,415 km of telecom fibre. The remote comparison is limited only by the instability and uncertainty of the strontium lattice clocks themselves, with negligible contributions from the optical frequency transfer. A fractional precision of 3 × 10−17 is reached after only 1,000 s averaging time, which is already 10 times better and more than four orders of magnitude faster than any previous long-distance clock comparison. The capability of performing high resolution international clock comparisons paves the way for a redefinition of the unit of time and an all-optical dissemination of the SI-second.

Nondestructive measurement of the transition probability in a Sr optical lattice clock

We present the experimental demonstration of non-destructive probing of the 1S0-3P0 clock transition probability in an optical lattice clock with 87Sr atoms. It is based on the phase shift induced by the atoms on a weak off-resonant laser beam. The method we propose is a differential measurement of this phase shift on two modulation sidebands with opposite detuning with respect to the 1S0-1P1 transition, allowing a detection limited by the photon shot noise. We have measured an atomic population of 10^4 atoms with a signal to noise ratio of 100 per cycle, while keeping more than 95% of the atoms in the optical lattice with a depth of 0.1 mK. The method proves simple and robust enough to be operated as part of the whole clock setup. This detection scheme enables us to reuse atoms for subsequent clock state interrogations, dramatically reducing the loading time and thereby improving the clock frequency stability.

Controlling excess noise in fiber-optics continuous-variable quantum key distribution

We describe a continuous-variable coherent-states quantum-key distribution system working at

Development of a strontium optical lattice clock for the SOC mission on the ISS

1550\phantom{\rule{0.3em}{0ex}}\mathrm{nm}

The space optical clocks project: Development of high-performance transportable and breadboard optical clocks and advanced subsystems

, and entirely made of standard fiber optics and telecommunications components, such as integrated-optics modulators, couplers and fast InGaAs photodiodes. The setup is composed of an emitter randomly modulating a coherent state in the complex plane with a doubly Gaussian distribution, and a receiver based on a shot-noise limited time-resolved homodyne detector. By using a reverse reconciliation protocol, the device can transfer a raw key rate up to