TY - JOUR
T1 - Scattering of cold-atom coherences by hot atoms
T2 - Frequency shifts from background-gas collisions
AU - Gibble, Kurt
PY - 2013/5/3
Y1 - 2013/5/3
N2 - Frequency shifts from background-gas collisions currently contribute significantly to the inaccuracy of atomic clocks. Because nearly all collisions with room-temperature background gases that transfer momentum eject the cold atoms from the clock, the interference between the scattered and unscattered waves in the forward direction dominates these frequency shifts. We show they are ≈10 times smaller than in room-temperature clocks and that van der Waals interactions produce the cold-atom background-gas shift. General considerations allow the loss of the Ramsey fringe amplitude to bound this frequency shift.
AB - Frequency shifts from background-gas collisions currently contribute significantly to the inaccuracy of atomic clocks. Because nearly all collisions with room-temperature background gases that transfer momentum eject the cold atoms from the clock, the interference between the scattered and unscattered waves in the forward direction dominates these frequency shifts. We show they are ≈10 times smaller than in room-temperature clocks and that van der Waals interactions produce the cold-atom background-gas shift. General considerations allow the loss of the Ramsey fringe amplitude to bound this frequency shift.
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U2 - 10.1103/PhysRevLett.110.180802
DO - 10.1103/PhysRevLett.110.180802
M3 - Article
C2 - 23683186
AN - SCOPUS:84877247132
SN - 0031-9007
VL - 110
JO - Physical review letters
JF - Physical review letters
IS - 18
M1 - 180802
ER -