Ultra-thin annular atomic gas cell and quantum precision instrument

Abstract

The application provides an ultrathin annular atomic cell and a quantum precision instrument, and relates to the technical field of atomic cells. The ultrathin annular atomic cell comprises: a cell, an annular light channel is arranged in the cell, and the cell is used for forming the light path of laser by using the light channel; a laser emitting assembly, the laser emitting assembly is arranged above the light channel and is used for emitting laser into the light channel; and a laser receiving assembly, the laser receiving assembly is arranged above the light channel and is used for receiving the laser emitted from the light channel. The application can form the light path of laser by using the annular light channel, and the laser emitting assembly and the laser receiving assembly are arranged on the same side of the light channel, so that the optical path of laser under the same thickness of the atomic cell is greatly expanded, the thickness of the atomic cell is reduced, and the demand for miniaturization is effectively met.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of atomic gas cell technology, and more specifically, to an ultrathin ring-shaped atomic gas cell and a quantum precision instrument. Background Technology

[0002] An atomic gas chamber is a sealed container used to contain gaseous atoms. It is filled with specific alkali metal atomic vapors (such as rubidium and cesium) and a buffer gas. High-precision physical quantity measurements are achieved through the interaction of lasers with the atoms, making it a core component of quantum precision instruments.

[0003] In current technologies, quantum precision instruments (such as atomic clocks, atomic magnetometers, and atomic gyroscopes) are gradually moving towards miniaturization. However, to achieve accurate measurement and improve the signal-to-noise ratio, the atomic gas cell requires the laser to have the longest possible optical path within it. Existing atomic gas cells are primarily linear microchannels, meaning the laser path needs to enter from surface A and exit from surface B (e.g.,...). Figure 1 As shown in the figure, the thickness of the atomic gas cell is difficult to reduce, which cannot meet the miniaturization requirements of quantum precision instruments. Summary of the Invention

[0004] This application addresses the shortcomings of existing methods by proposing an ultrathin annular atomic gas cell and a quantum precision instrument to solve the problem that the thickness of existing atomic gas cells is difficult to reduce and thus cannot meet the miniaturization requirements.

[0005] In a first aspect, embodiments of this application provide an ultrathin annular atomic gas chamber, comprising: An air chamber, wherein an annular optical channel is provided in the air chamber, and the air chamber is used to form a laser optical path using the optical channel; A laser emitting assembly is disposed above the optical channel and is used to emit laser light into the optical channel; A laser receiving component is disposed above the optical channel and is used to receive laser light emitted from the optical channel.

[0006] In one possible implementation, the optical channel is provided with reflectors at the beginning, end, and corners. The reflectors are used to reflect laser light, and the angle of the reflectors corresponds to the shape of the optical channel, the manner in which the laser light enters or exits, and the position of the reflectors.

[0007] In one possible implementation, the air chamber includes a cover and a base, with the upper side of the base forming the light channel, the reflector disposed within the light channel, the cover affixed to the upper side of the base, the laser emitting assembly and the laser receiving assembly disposed on the side of the cover away from the base, and the area of ​​the cover that contacts the laser emitting end of the laser emitting assembly and the laser receiving end of the laser receiving assembly being made of a light-transmitting material.

[0008] In one possible implementation, the laser emitted by the laser emitting assembly passes through the cover and is perpendicularly incident into the optical channel, which has a rectangular structure, and the reflector is set at an angle of 45°.

[0009] In one possible implementation, the base is a silicon wafer, and the cover is made of BF33 glass, with the cover bonded to the side of the silicon wafer where the light channel is located.

[0010] In one possible implementation, the optical channel is shaped by ion beam etching, and the shaping of the reflector includes: The position in the optical channel corresponding to the reflector is etched using an ion beam according to the setting angle of the reflector to form a mirror body; Once the etching of the mirror body is complete, a film is deposited on the surface of the mirror body to form the reflector.

[0011] In one possible implementation, the laser receiving component is a photodetector, which is used to convert the received laser into an electrical signal, and the laser receiving component and the laser emitting component are disposed on the same side of the cover.

[0012] In one possible implementation, the air chamber has a through hole in the middle, the light channel surrounds the through hole, and the shape of the light channel corresponds to the through hole.

[0013] In one possible implementation, the laser emitting assembly includes a laser, a collimating lens, a polarizer, and a λ / 4 waveplate stacked sequentially from top to bottom, with the laser emitted by the laser passing through the λ / 4 waveplate into the optical channel.

[0014] According to one aspect of the embodiments of this application, a quantum precision instrument is provided, the quantum precision instrument comprising the ultrathin annular atomic gas chamber as described above.

[0015] The beneficial technical effects of the technical solutions provided in this application include: This application provides an ultrathin annular atomic gas cell, comprising: a gas cell with an annular optical channel within it, the gas cell being used to form an optical path for laser light; a laser emitting component disposed above the optical channel for projecting laser light into the optical channel; and a laser receiving component disposed above the optical channel for receiving laser light emitted from the optical channel. This application utilizes an annular optical channel to form the laser optical path and positions the laser emitting component and laser receiving component on the same side of the optical channel, significantly extending the optical path of the laser light and reducing the thickness of the atomic gas cell for the same thickness, effectively meeting the requirements of miniaturization.

[0016] Additional aspects and advantages of this application will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and will become apparent from the description or may be learned by practice of this application. Attached Figure Description

[0017] The above and / or additional aspects and advantages of this application will become apparent and readily understood from the following description of the embodiments taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein: Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the optical path of an existing ultrathin annular atomic gas cell provided for an embodiment of this application; Figure 2 A structural diagram of the ultrathin annular atomic gas cell provided in the embodiments of this application; Figure 3 A partial structural diagram of the ultrathin annular atomic gas cell provided in the embodiments of this application; Figure 4 A side view of an ultrathin annular atomic gas cell provided in an embodiment of this application; Figure 5 A schematic diagram illustrating the mirror angle setting provided in an embodiment of this application; Figure 6 Another schematic diagram showing the angle setting of the transmitting mirror provided in an embodiment of this application; Figure 7 A structural diagram of a quantum precision instrument provided in an embodiment of this application; In the diagram: 1. Base; 11. Reflector; 2. Cover; 3. Laser emitting assembly; 31. Laser; 32. Collimating lens; 33. Polarizer; 34. λ / 4 waveplate; 4. Laser receiving assembly; 5. Through hole; 6. Laser. Detailed Implementation The embodiments of this application are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be understood that the embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings are exemplary descriptions for explaining the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application, and do not constitute a limitation on the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application.

[0018] Those skilled in the art will understand that, unless specifically stated otherwise, the terms "described" and "the" as used herein may also include plural forms. It should be further understood that the term "comprising" as used in this application's specification means the presence of the stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and / or components, but does not exclude implementations of other features, information, data, steps, operations, elements, components, and / or combinations thereof supported by this art. It should be understood that when we say an element is "connected" or "coupled" to another element, the element may be directly connected or coupled to the other element, or it may mean that the element and the other element are connected through an intermediate element. Furthermore, "connected" or "coupled" as used herein may include wireless connections or wireless coupling. The term "and / or" as used herein refers to at least one of the items defined by the term; for example, "A and / or B" may be implemented as "A," or as "B," or as "A and B."

[0019] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of this application clearer, the embodiments of this application will be described in further detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0020] This application provides an ultrathin annular atomic gas chamber, which can be used in quantum precision instruments such as chip-level atomic clocks, chip-level atomic magnetometers, atomic magnetometers, and atomic gyroscopes. Quantum precision instruments achieve high-precision physical measurements through this ultrathin annular atomic gas chamber.

[0021] Optionally, such as Figures 1-6 As shown, the ultrathin annular atomic gas chamber includes: a gas chamber with an annular optical channel inside, the gas chamber being used to form the optical path of laser 6 using the optical channel; a laser emitting component 3, the laser emitting component 3 being disposed above the optical channel and used to emit laser 6 into the optical channel; and a laser receiving component 4, the laser receiving component 4 being disposed above the optical channel and used to receive laser 6 emitted from the optical channel.

[0022] Optionally, the ultrathin annular atomic gas cell can be an alkali metal gas cell, and the optical channel contains atomic vapor composed of alkali metal atoms. After the laser 6 enters the optical channel, it interacts with the alkali metal atoms in the atomic vapor. The quantum precision instrument measures the atomic energy level transition by detecting changes in the optical signal (such as absorption or fluorescence), thereby realizing high-precision measurement of time, magnetic field or angular velocity.

[0023] Optionally, such as Figure 3As shown, reflectors 11 can be provided at the beginning, end, and corners of the optical channel. The reflectors 11 are used to reflect the laser 6. The angle of the reflectors 11 corresponds to the shape of the optical channel, the manner in which the laser 6 enters or exits, and the position of the reflectors 11. Specifically, after the laser 6 enters the optical channel, the reflectors 11 in the optical channel change the propagation direction of the laser 6 from a state intersecting (e.g., perpendicular) to the optical channel to a state parallel to the optical channel and in the same direction as the optical channel's extension. The reflector 11 at the end of the optical channel is used to adjust the propagation direction of the laser 6 towards the laser receiving component 4.

[0024] Optionally, the setting angles of the reflectors 11 at the beginning and end of the optical channel can be the same as or different from the setting angles of the reflectors 11 at other positions in the optical channel. Specifically, for example... Figure 5 , Figure 6 As shown, the setting angle of the reflector 11 can be 45° or 54.7° (e.g., using a 54.7° reflector 11 to reflect the laser into a state parallel to the optical channel and to reflect the laser in the optical channel to the laser receiving component 4). Alternatively, the setting angle can be set to other angles that can ensure the laser 6 propagates along the optical channel and enters or exits the optical channel (e.g., 53°, 60°, etc.) according to the laser emission angle and laser receiving angle of the laser emission component 3 and the laser receiving component 4.

[0025] Optionally, when the shape of the optical channel changes, the setting angle of the reflector 11 can also be adjusted according to the shape of the optical channel to ensure that the propagation path of the laser 6 corresponds to the shape of the optical channel. The shape of the optical channel can be rectangular, trapezoidal, hexagonal, or other shapes, and its specific shape can be determined according to actual needs.

[0026] Optionally, such as Figure 2 , Figure 4 As shown, the air chamber includes a cover 2 and a base 1. A light channel is formed on the upper side of the base 1. A reflector 11 is disposed in the light channel. The cover 2 is attached to the upper side of the top of the base 1. The laser emitting component 3 and the laser receiving component 4 are disposed on the side of the cover 2 away from the base 1. The area of ​​the cover 2 that contacts the laser emitting end of the laser 6 of the laser emitting component 3 and the laser receiving end of the laser 6 of the laser receiving component 4 is made of a light-transmitting material.

[0027] Optionally, the cover 2, except for the area in contact with the laser emitting component 3 and the laser receiving component 4, can also be made of transparent material. Furthermore, the shape of the cover 2 can be the same as that of the base 1, and the cover 2 can be fixed to the side of the base 1 where the light channel is located by bonding.

[0028] In one embodiment, the laser 6 of the laser emitting component 3 passes through the cover 2 and is perpendicularly incident into the optical channel, which has a rectangular structure, and the reflector 11 is set at an angle of 45°. The direction of laser 6 incident into and out of the laser emitting component 3 can be adjusted according to the angle of the reflector 11 used to reflect the laser 6 in the optical channel.

[0029] Optionally, the base 1 can be a silicon wafer, and the cover 2 can be made of BF33 (a high-quality borosilicate glass) glass, with the cover 2 bonded to the side of the silicon wafer where the light channel is located. The ultra-thin annular atomic gas cell can be produced using MEMS technology, and the cover 2 can also be made of other transparent materials suitable for laser penetration.

[0030] In one embodiment, the thickness of the base 1 can be 500 μm and the thickness of the cover 2 can be 200 μm. Compared with the existing ultrathin annular atomic gas chamber, the thickness is significantly reduced, thereby achieving ultrathin physical packaging. Furthermore, compared with the existing ultrathin annular atomic gas chamber, which requires the silicon wafer thickness to be set to about 1 to 1.5 mm, the silicon wafer thickness of this application is significantly reduced, which can effectively reduce the requirements of the manufacturing process on equipment, reduce equipment costs and losses, and reduce the manufacturing cost of silicon wafers.

[0031] Optionally, when the base 1 is a silicon wafer, the light channel is formed by ion beam etching. The formation of the reflector 11 includes: using an ion beam (IBE) to etch the position in the light channel corresponding to the reflector 11 according to the setting angle of the reflector 11 to form a mirror body; after confirming that the mirror body etching is complete, a film is deposited on the surface of the mirror body to form the reflector 11.

[0032] Optionally, when using ion beam etching, dry etching or wet etching can be selected to form the optical channel and mirror body, depending on actual needs and the type of etching equipment.

[0033] Optionally, the coating on the mirror surface can be a high-reflectivity metallic film, which is used to reflect the laser 6. The type of coating can be determined according to actual needs and the reflection requirements of the laser 6.

[0034] In one embodiment, during the etching process to form the optical channel, the position corresponding to the reflector 11 in the optical channel can be etched at an angle using an ion beam IBE to form a 45° bevel. A high-reflectivity metal film is then deposited on the surface of this bevel to form a 45° micromirror (i.e., reflector 11). The optical channel is rectangular, with the laser emitting component 3 facing the beginning of the optical channel and the laser receiving component 4 facing the end of the optical channel. Five reflectors 11 are disposed within the optical channel, and the angle of each of the five reflectors 11 is 45°.

[0035] Optionally, the laser receiving component 4 is a photodetector (PD), which is used to convert the received laser 6 into an electrical signal. The laser receiving component 4 and the laser emitting component 3 are located on the same side of the cover 2.

[0036] Optionally, the laser emitting assembly 3 includes a laser 31, a collimating lens 32, a polarizer 33, and a λ / 4 waveplate 34 stacked sequentially from top to bottom. The laser 6 emitted by the laser 31 enters the optical channel through the λ / 4 waveplate 34. The laser 6 emitted by the laser 31 passes sequentially through the collimating lens 32, the polarizer 33, and the λ / 4 waveplate 34, and then passes through the cover 2 to enter the optical channel.

[0037] In one embodiment, the laser 31 can be a VCSEL (Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser). The laser 6 emitted by the VCSEL is adjusted by optical components (collimating lens 32, polarizing mirror, and λ / 4 waveplate 34), and is incident vertically from above the cover 2 into the groove (optical channel) of the silicon wafer. After being reflected by the reflector 11 in the groove, a parallel beam is formed. This parallel beam interacts with atomic vapor and is finally received by the PD (laser receiving component 4) by the reflection of the reflector 11 at the end of the optical channel. The PD can generate a corresponding electrical signal based on the received laser 6, and this electrical signal is transmitted to other devices in the quantum precision instrument for subsequent processing.

[0038] Optionally, the air chamber can be a rectangular structure, and a through hole 5 can be provided in the center of the air chamber. The light channel surrounds the through hole 5, and the shape of the light channel corresponds to the shape of the through hole 5. The through hole 5 penetrates through the base 1 and the cover 2.

[0039] Optionally, the shape of the through hole 5 in the middle of the air chamber can vary according to the shape of the optical channel. Specifically, when the shape of the optical channel is rectangular, the shape of the through hole 5 can also be rectangular. The shape of the through hole 5 can be the same as or different from the shape of the optical channel.

[0040] In one embodiment, the gas chamber is an annular alkali metal gas chamber. The VCSEL is incident perpendicularly, and the laser 6 is converted into a parallel beam by a 45° micromirror disposed within the optical channel. Within the optical channel, the laser 6 is reflected by the 45° micromirror, and the reflected laser 6 interacts with the alkali metal atoms in the gas chamber. As the optical path length increases, the signal-to-noise ratio significantly improves. Furthermore, the optical path length of this invention is not limited by the thickness of the silicon wafer; while increasing the optical path length, the chip thickness remains only 700 μm, enabling the fabrication of ultra-thin physical packages.

[0041] This application provides an ultrathin annular atomic gas chamber, comprising: a gas chamber with an annular optical channel within it, the gas chamber being used to form the optical path of a laser 6 using the optical channel; a laser emitting component 3, disposed above the optical channel, for projecting the laser 6 into the optical channel; and a laser receiving component 4, disposed above the optical channel, for receiving the laser 6 emitted from the optical channel. This application utilizes an annular optical channel to form the optical path of the laser 6, and positions the laser emitting component 3 and the laser receiving component 4 on the same side of the optical channel, significantly extending the optical path of the laser 6 while reducing the thickness of the atomic gas chamber for the same thickness, effectively meeting the requirements of miniaturization.

[0042] Based on the same inventive concept, this application also proposes a quantum precision instrument, such as Figure 7 As shown, the quantum precision instrument includes an ultrathin annular atomic gas cell as described in the above embodiment, through which precision physical measurements are achieved.

[0043] Alternatively, quantum precision instruments can be measuring instruments manufactured using MEMS technology, such as chip-scale atomic clocks and chip-scale atomic magnetometers.

[0044] Those skilled in the art will understand that the steps, measures, and solutions in the various operations, methods, and processes discussed in this application can be alternated, modified, combined, or deleted. Furthermore, other steps, measures, and solutions in the various operations, methods, and processes discussed in this application can also be alternated, modified, rearranged, decomposed, combined, or deleted. Furthermore, steps, measures, and solutions in related technologies that are similar to those disclosed in this application can also be alternated, modified, rearranged, decomposed, combined, or deleted.

[0045] In the description of this application, the terms "center," "upper," "lower," "front," "rear," "left," "right," "vertical," "horizontal," "top," "bottom," "inner," and "outer," etc., indicate directions or positional relationships based on the exemplary directions or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings. They are used to facilitate the description or simplification of the embodiments of this application and are not intended to indicate or imply that the device or component referred to must have a specific orientation or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, they should not be construed as limitations on this application.

[0046] The terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly specifying the number of technical features indicated. Therefore, a feature defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of that feature. In the description of this application, unless otherwise stated, "a plurality of" means two or more.

[0047] In the description of this application, it should be noted that, unless otherwise expressly specified and limited, the terms "installation," "connection," and "joining" should be interpreted broadly. For example, they can refer to a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; they can refer to a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium; and they can refer to the internal communication between two components. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms in this application based on the specific circumstances.

[0048] In the description of this specification, specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments or examples.

[0049] The above description is only a partial implementation of this application. It should be noted that for those skilled in the art, other similar implementation methods based on the technical concept of this application, without departing from the technical concept of this application, also fall within the protection scope of the embodiments of this application.

Claims

1. An ultrathin annular atomic gas chamber, characterized in that, include: An air chamber, wherein an annular optical channel is provided in the air chamber, and the air chamber is used to form a laser optical path using the optical channel; A laser emitting assembly is disposed above the optical channel and is used to emit laser light into the optical channel; A laser receiving component is disposed above the optical channel and is used to receive laser light emitted from the optical channel.

2. The ultrathin annular atomic gas chamber according to claim 1, characterized in that, The optical channel is equipped with reflectors at the beginning, end, and corners. The reflectors are used to reflect laser light. The angle of the reflectors corresponds to the shape of the optical channel, the way the laser light enters or exits, and the position of the reflectors.

3. The ultrathin annular atomic gas chamber according to claim 2, characterized in that, The air chamber includes a cover and a base. The upper side of the base forms the light channel. The reflector is disposed in the light channel. The cover is attached to the upper side of the top of the base. The laser emitting component and the laser receiving component are disposed on the side of the cover away from the base. The area of ​​the cover that contacts the laser emitting end of the laser emitting component and the laser receiving end of the laser receiving component is made of a light-transmitting material.

4. The ultrathin annular atomic gas chamber according to claim 3, characterized in that, The laser emitted by the laser emitting component passes through the cover and is perpendicularly incident into the light channel, which has a rectangular structure, and the reflector is set at an angle of 45°.

5. The ultrathin annular atomic gas cell according to claim 3, characterized in that, The base is a silicon wafer, and the cover is made of BF33 glass. The cover is bonded to the side of the silicon wafer where the light channel is located.

6. The ultrathin annular atomic gas cell according to claim 5, characterized in that, The optical channel is formed by ion beam etching, and the forming of the reflector includes: The position in the optical channel corresponding to the reflector is etched using an ion beam according to the setting angle of the reflector to form a mirror body; Once the etching of the mirror body is complete, a film is deposited on the surface of the mirror body to form the reflector.

7. The ultrathin annular atomic gas chamber according to claim 3, characterized in that, The laser receiving component is a photodetector, which is used to convert the received laser into an electrical signal. The laser receiving component and the laser emitting component are located on the same side of the cover.

8. The ultrathin annular atomic gas cell according to claim 1, characterized in that, The air chamber has a through hole in the middle, and the light channel surrounds the through hole. The shape of the light channel corresponds to the through hole.

9. The ultrathin annular atomic gas cell according to claim 1, characterized in that, The laser emitting assembly includes a laser, a collimating lens, a polarizer, and a λ / 4 waveplate stacked from top to bottom. The laser emitted by the laser is directed into the optical channel through the λ / 4 waveplate.

10. A quantum precision instrument, characterized in that, The quantum precision instrument includes the ultrathin annular atomic gas chamber as described in any one of claims 1-9.

Images