Study of Rb - vapor coated cell; atomic diffusion and cell curing process

Abstract

We present the results of the study of an optical resonant cell filled by a vapor of the Rb atoms and coated with a non-stick polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) polymer. We show that it is possible to define correctly the diffusion coefficient of the atoms in the coating, using geometric parameters of the cell and the vapor density in the cell volume only. The dependence of the diffusion coefficient on the cell curing time is presented. It is shown that the mysterious cell curing process can be explained in terms of the polymerization of the polymer coating by alkali atoms. Anomalous long dwell time of the Rb atoms on the PDMS coating is discussed as well.