Micromachined Alkali Atom Vapor Cells for Chip-Scale Atomic Clocks

Published

January 30, 2004

Author(s)

Li-Anne Liew, Svenja A. Knappe, John M. Moreland, Hugh Robinson, Leo W. Hollberg, John Kitching

Abstract

This paper describes the fabrication of chip-sized alkali atom vapor cells, for use in highly miniaturized atomic frequency references, using silicon micromachining and anodic bonding technology. The cells consist of silicon cavities with internal volume ranging from a few mm³ to less than 1 mm³. The cells were filled with cesium and nitrogen buffer gas either by chemical reaction of cesium chloride and barium azide, or by direct injection of elemental cesium within a controlled anaerobic environment. Cesium optical absorption spectra were obtained from the cells, and coherent population trapping resonances with linewidth of about 1 kHz were measured.

Proceedings Title

Proceedings of the 17th Annual IEEE International Conference on Micro Electromechanical Systems (MEMS 2004)

Conference Dates

January 25-29, 2004

Conference Location

Maastricht, 1, NL

Conference Title

17th IEEE International Conference on Micro Electromechanical Systems (MEMS 2004)

Pub Type

Conferences

Keywords

atomic clock, cell, cesium, MEMS, microfabrication

Citation

Liew, L. , Knappe, S. , Moreland, J. , Robinson, H. , Hollberg, L. and Kitching, J. (2004), Micromachined Alkali Atom Vapor Cells for Chip-Scale Atomic Clocks, Proceedings of the 17th Annual IEEE International Conference on Micro Electromechanical Systems (MEMS 2004), Maastricht, 1, NL (Accessed October 8, 2025)