Atomic clocks for geodesy.

We review experimental progress on optical atomic clocks and frequency transfer, and consider the prospects of using these technologies for geodetic measurements. Today, optical atomic frequency standards have reached relative frequency inaccuracies below 10-17, opening new fields of fundamental and applied research. The dependence of atomic frequencies on the gravitational potential makes atomic clocks ideal candidates for the search for deviations in the predictions of Einstein's general relativity, tests of modern unifying theories and the development of new gravity field sensors. In this review, we introduce the concepts of optical atomic clocks and present the status of international clock development and comparison. Besides further improvement in stability and accuracy of today's best clocks, a large effort is put into increasing the reliability and technological readiness for applications outside of specialized laboratories with compact, portable devices. With relative frequency uncertainties of 10-18, comparisons of optical frequency standards are foreseen to contribute together with satellite and terrestrial data to the precise determination of fundamental height reference systems in geodesy with a resolution at the cm-level. The long-term stability of atomic standards will deliver excellent long-term height references for geodetic measurements and for the modelling and understanding of our Earth.

Chirped frequency transfer: a tool for synchronization and time transfer.

We propose and demonstrate the phase-stabilized transfer of a chirped frequency as a tool for synchronization and time transfer. Technically, this is done by evaluating remote measurements of the transferred, chirped frequency. The gates of the frequency counters, here driven by a 10-MHz oscillation derived from a hydrogen maser, play a role analogous to the 1-pulse per second (PPS) signals usually employed for time transfer. In general, for time transfer, the gates consequently must be related to the external clock. Synchronizing observations based on frequency measurements, on the other hand, only requires a stable oscillator driving the frequency counters. In a proof of principle, we demonstrate the suppression of symmetrical delays, such as the geometrical path delay. We transfer an optical frequency chirped by around 240 kHz/s over a fiber link of around 149 km. We observe an accuracy and simultaneity, as well as a precision (Allan deviation, 18,000 s averaging interval) of the transferred frequency of around 2 × 10(-19). We apply chirped frequency transfer to remote measurements of the synchronization between two counters' gate intervals. Here, we find a precision of around 200 ps at an estimated overall uncertainty of around 500 ps. The measurement results agree with those obtained from reference measurements, being well within the uncertainty. In the present setup, timing offsets up to 4 min can be measured unambiguously. We indicate how this range can be extended further.

Eavesdropping time and frequency: phase noise cancellation along a time-varying path, such as an optical fiber.

Single-mode optical fiber is a highly efficient connecting medium used not only for optical telecommunications but also for the dissemination of ultrastable frequencies or timing signals. Ma et al. [Opt. Lett.19, 1777 (1994)] described a measurement and control system to deliver the same optical frequency at two places, namely the two ends of a fiber, by eliminating the "fiber-induced phase-noise modulation, which corrupts high-precision frequency-based applications." I present a simple detection and control scheme to deliver the same optical frequency at many places anywhere along a transmission path, or in its vicinity, with a relative instability of 1 part in 10(19). The same idea applies to radio frequency and timing signals. This considerably simplifies future efforts to make precise timing or frequency signals available to many users, as required in some large-scale science experiments.

Precision measurement of the hydrogen 1S-2S frequency via a 920-km fiber link.

We have measured the frequency of the extremely narrow 1S-2S two-photon transition in atomic hydrogen using a remote cesium fountain clock with the help of a 920 km stabilized optical fiber. With an improved detection method we obtain f(1S-2S)=2466 061 413 187 018 (11) Hz with a relative uncertainty of 4.5×10(-15), confirming our previous measurement obtained with a local cesium clock [C. G. Parthey et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 107, 203001 (2011)]. Combining these results with older measurements, we constrain the linear combinations of Lorentz boost symmetry violation parameters c((TX))=(3.1±1.9)×10(-11) and 0.92c((TY))+0.40c((TZ))=(2.6±5.3)×10(-11) in the standard model extension framework [D. Colladay, V. A. Kostelecký, Phys. Rev. D. 58, 116002 (1998)].

Phase-coherent frequency comparison of optical clocks using a telecommunication fiber link.

We have explored the performance of 2 "dark fibers" of a commercial telecommunication fiber link for a remote comparison of optical clocks. These fibers establish a network in Germany that will eventually link optical frequency standards at PTB with those at the Institute of Quantum Optics (IQ) at the Leibniz University of Hanover, and the Max Planck Institutes in Erlangen (MPL) and Garching (MPQ). We demonstrate for the first time that within several minutes a phase coherent comparison of clock lasers at the few 10(-15) level can also be accomplished when the lasers are more than 100 km apart. Based on the performance of the fiber link to the IQ, we estimate the expected stability for the link from PTB to MPQ via MPL that bridges a distance of approximately 900 km.

Long term comparison of two fiber based frequency comb systems.

Mode-locked erbium-doped fiber lasers are ideal comb generators for optical frequency metrology. We compare two fiber frequency combs by measuring an optical frequency independently with both combs and comparing their results. The two frequency measurements agree within 6x10-16. This is to our knowledge the first direct comparison between two fiber based frequency combs.

Phase-locked two-branch erbium-doped fiber laser system for long-term precision measurements of optical frequencies.

We present a highly versatile approach to the application of femtosecond Er:fiber lasers in optical frequency metrology. Our concept relies on the implementation of two parallel amplifiers, seeded by a single master oscillator. With the comb spacing locked to a frequency of 100 MHz, we apply the output from the first amplifier to generate a feedback signal to achieve a simultaneous phase-lock for the comb offset frequency. The output of the independently configurable second amplifier enables precision frequency measurements in the visible and near-infrared. As a first application, we continuously measure the absolute frequency of a resonator-stabilized diode laser over a period of 88 hours.