Optical clocks based on ultra-narrow three-photon resonances in alkaline earth atoms

Abstract

A sharp resonance line that appears in three-photon transitions between the $^{1}S_{0}$ and $^{3}P_{0}$ states of alkaline earth and Yb atoms is proposed as an optical frequency standard. This proposal permits the use of the even isotopes, in which the clock transition is narrower than in proposed clocks using the odd isotopes and the energy interval is not affected by external magnetic fields or the polarization of trapping light. The method has the unique feature that the width and rate of the clock transition can be continuously adjusted from the $MHz$ level to sub-$mHz$ without loss of signal amplitude by varying the intensities of the three optical beams. Doppler and recoil effects can be eliminated by proper alignment of the three optical beams or by point confinement in a lattice trap. The three beams can be mixed to produce the optical frequency corresponding to the $^{3}P_{0}$ - $^{1}S_{0}$ clock interval.