Preparatory steps for the experimental investigation of the highly forbidden 5s - 6s transition in rubidium using an atom trap and laser cooling are reported. A magneto-optical trap (MOT) has been assembled including saturation spectroscopy and a dichroic vapor laser lock. A frequency-doubled diode laser system has been installed to perform the spectroscopy of the forbidden transition with cold Rb atoms in the trap. The properties of the ns - n's transition in the presence of an external electric fi#12;eld have been investigated theoretically. A fi#12;rst measurement will be exploring the Stark-induced transition amplitude and the very faint magnetic dipole amplitude. The rubidium experiment is a precursor study for a long-term project at TRIUMF, Canada's National Laboratory for nuclear and particle physics, to measure atomic parity violation in the equivalent 7s - 8s transition in francium, the heaviest alkali atom which has no stable isotopes.

Preparatory steps for the experimental investigation of the highly forbidden 5s - 6s transition in rubidium using an atom trap and laser cooling are reported. A magneto-optical trap (MOT) has been assembled including saturation spectroscopy and a dichroic vapor laser lock. A frequency-doubled diode laser system has been installed to perform the spectroscopy of the forbidden transition with cold Rb atoms in the trap. The properties of the ns - n's transition in the presence of an external electric fi#12;eld have been investigated theoretically. A fi#12;rst measurement will be exploring the Stark-induced transition amplitude and the very faint magnetic dipole amplitude. The rubidium experiment is a precursor study for a long-term project at TRIUMF, Canada's National Laboratory for nuclear and particle physics, to measure atomic parity violation in the equivalent 7s - 8s transition in francium, the heaviest alkali atom which has no stable isotopes.

The author presents the successful development of an on-chip, monolithic, integrated rubidium vapor-cell. These vapor-cells integrate ridge waveguide techniques with hollow-core waveguiding technology known as Anti-Resonant Reflecting Optical Waveguides (ARROWs). These devices are manufactured on-site in BYU's Integrated Microelectronic Laboratory (IML) using common silicon wafer microfabrication techniques. The ARROW platform fabrication is outlined, but the bulk of the dissertation focuses on novel packaging techniques that allow for the successful introduction and sealing of rubidium vapor into these micro-sized vapor-cells. The unique geometries and materials utilized in the ARROW platform render common vapor-cell sealing techniques unusable. The development of three generations of successful vapor-cells is chronicled. The sealing techniques represented in these three generations of vapor-cells include high-temperature epoxy seals, cold-weld copper crimping, variable pressure vacuum capabilities, indium solder seals, and electroplated passivation coatings. The performance of these seals are quantified using accelerated lifetime tests combined with optical spectroscopy. Finally, the successful probing of the rubidium absorption spectrum, electromagnetically induced transparency, and slow light on the ARROW-based vapor-cell platform is reported.

Ce travail de thèse, effectué dans le cadre du projet européen MClocks (http://www.inrim.it/mclocks), reporte le développement et la caractérisation métrologique d’une horloge atomique à cellule de césium de haute performance basée sur le phénomène de piégeage cohérent de population (CPT). Cette horloge exploite un schéma de pompage CPT optimisé nommé push-pull optical pumping (PPOP), permettant la détection de résonances CPT à fort contraste sur la transition d’horloge 0-0. Une caractérisation détaillée des différents éléments de l’horloge est reportée. L’horloge fut exploitée en mode continu (CW) et en mode impulsionnel de type Ramsey. Dans les deux modes de fonctionnement, l’horloge démontre une stabilité relative de fréquence de l’ordre de 2 10−13 τ−1/2 jusque 100 s d’intégration, principalement limitée par des effets de puissance laser. Cette horloge atomique, parmi les meilleures horloges à cellule développées à travers le monde, pourrait trouver des applications pour les systèmes de télécommunications, d’instrumentation, de défense ou navigation par satellite.Cette thèse reporte aussi une technique originale de stabilisation de fréquence laser par spectroscopie sub-Dopplerbi-fréquence en cellule. La plateforme constituée par l’horloge a été utilisée pour mener des tests de physique plus amont incluant la caractérisation par spectroscopie CPT d’une cellule de césium avec un revêtement anti-relaxant OTS (octadecyltrichlorosilane) ou la caractérisation de microcellules à vapeur de césium avec gaz tampon développées à FEMTO-ST pour des horloges atomiques miniatures. / This thesis work, performed in the frame of the MClocks European project (http://www.inrim.it/mclocks), reports the development and metrological characterization of a high-performance Cs vapor cell atomic clock based on coherent population trapping (CPT). The clock uses an optimized CPT pumping scheme, named push-pull optical pumping (PPOP), allowing the detection of high-contrast CPT resonances on the 0-0 magnetic-field insensitive clock transition. A detailed characterization of key components of the clock is reported. The clock was operated in the continuous-wave (CW) regime and in a Ramsey-like pulsed regime. In both regimes, the clock demonstrates a short-term fractional frequency stability at the level of 2 10−13 τ−1/2 up to 100 s averaging time, mainly limited by laser power effects. This CPT clock, ranking among the best microwave vapor cell atomic frequency standards, could find applications in telecommunication, instrumentation, defense or satellite-based navigation systems.This thesis reports also a novel laser frequency stabilization technique using dual-frequency sub-Doppler spectroscopy in a vapor cell. The clock ”platform” has also been used to perform using CPT spectroscopy the characterization of a Cs vapor cell coated with octadecyltrichlorosilane (OTS) or original buffer-gas filled Cs vapor micro-fabricated cells developed in FEMTO-ST for CPT-based miniature atomic clocks.