FEMTO: FEmtosecond Measurement Technology Options

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There are a multitude of both civilian and military applications needing precise timing and timekeeping. There isconsiderable interest is so-called chip-scale atomic clocks exploiting quantum effects and having stabilities of the order of1E-12 for simple thermal atom clocks to 1E-16 in the case of optical lattice clocks. The applications of compact atomicclocks are vast and include:1. Autonomous navigation, e.g., automotive, maritime, aviation, personal;2. Space, e.g., micro satellites;3. Communications, e.g., cellular systems, telecommunications networks, military radio;4. Finance, e.g., high-frequency computer based trading, data securityThe FEMTO project is a direct response to the challenges outlined in the UK Quantum Technology Landscape 2014(Pritchard & Till, 2014). The project is the first step towards transforming the new quantum clock technologies fromresearch laboratory experiments into engineered solutions. The new quantum clock technologies, encompassing thermalatom, trapped single cold-atom and trapped multiple cold-atom physics are disruptive innovations. Such clocks will createnew markets and applications through both their improved stability and also potential reduction in size, weight, power andcost.To reap the benefits of the new quantum science innovation, engineering innovation is now required. The understandingand behaviour of quantum clock physics has been obtained in the well-defined, benign confines of a laboratory, usinggeneral-purpose equipment. The challenge now is to develop robust physics packages able to withstand the end-userenvironment while optimising the electronic systems for performance, power, mass, volume and cost. Recognising thevariety of applications for the new quantum clocks, the approach of FEMTO includes a number of innovations to maintainflexibility. There will likely not be a single optimum solution for any application; one may wish to have best performance(highest stability) or best efficiency (lowest power). FEMTO will allow the user to choose. There are no current commercialclocks with such capabilities.