Open AccessIn situ dissolution or deposition of Ytterbium (Yb) metal in microhotplate wells for a miniaturized atomic clock
Author(s) -
Ronald P. Manginell,
Matthew W. Moorman,
John M. Anderson,
George Robert Burns,
Komandoor E. Achyuthan,
David R. Wheeler,
Peter Schwindt
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
optics express
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.394
H-Index - 271
ISSN - 1094-4087
DOI - 10.1364/oe.20.024650
Subject(s) - ytterbium , materials science , fabrication , atomic layer deposition , atomic clock , evaporation , dissolution , chemical vapor deposition , nanotechnology , optoelectronics , thin film , optics , chemistry , doping , medicine , alternative medicine , physics , pathology , thermodynamics
Current atomic clocks are burdened by size, weight, power and portability limitations to satisfy a broad range of potential applications. One critical need in the fabrication of a miniaturized atomic clock is small, low-power metallic sources. Exploiting the relatively high vapor pressure of ytterbium (Yb) and its dissolution in anhydrous ammonia, we report two independent techniques for depositing Yb inside a well micromachined into a microhotplate. Subsequent in situ evaporation of Yb from the microhotplate well serves as a low-power metallic source suitable for atomic clocks. The deposition and evaporation of Yb were confirmed using a variety of physicochemical techniques including quartz crystal microbalance, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and laser fluorescence. We also describe the fabrication of the microhotplate device, an integral component of our Yb-based miniature atomic clock. The Yb deposition/evaporation on a microhotplate well is thus useful as a low power Yb source during the fabrication of a miniaturized atomic clock, and this technique could be used for other applications requiring a vapor of a metal that has a moderate vapor pressure.