[time-nuts] optically excite a quartz crystal?

[Bill Hawkins]

If laser excitation won't work, how about sound, as an opera singer
breaking a glass?

Use feedback control to bring the driven crystal to resonance with the
"free" crystal. Might need to go down to 100 KHz to make this practical.

Speaking of practical, how would you levitate the free crystal?

Bill Hawkins


-----Original Message-----
From: cdelect at juno.com
Sent: Sunday, April 20, 2014 12:35 PM

After reading about how the BVA oscillators avoid the problems of "on
crystal" electrodes I was wondering if anyone has tried to optically
excite a quartz crystal in an oscillator?

(Use a modulated laser to drive the bare crystal, and a photodetector
setup to detect and provide feedback?) 

Seems like it might work. Any comments?

Corby