[time-nuts] How does it work?

Rob Kimberley rk at timing-consultants.com
Tue Jun 28 17:07:30 UTC 2011


There is a useful paper describing this:

http://optics.colorado.edu/~kelvin/classes/opticslab/LaserCooling3.doc.pdf

Rob Kimberley


-----Original Message-----
From: time-nuts-bounces at febo.com [mailto:time-nuts-bounces at febo.com] On
Behalf Of William H. Fite
Sent: 28 June 2011 5:56 PM
To: Discussion of precise time and frequency measurement
Subject: [time-nuts] How does it work?

For the sake of this poor, befuddled non-engineer, would one of you worthy
gentlemen explain how it is that lasers striking a mass of cesium atoms and
compressing them into a ball (in a cesium fountain) has the effect of
cooling them to near absolute zero?  That seems counter-intuitive to me, but
then I have virtually no education in this area.

Thanks!

Bill
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