Experimental study of 199Hg spin anti-relaxation coatings

TL;DR

This study compares how different wall coatings affect spin relaxation times in a $^{199}$Hg magnetometer, finding fluorinated coatings significantly improve coherence times, with fluorinated paraffin providing the best results.

Contribution

It provides experimental data on the effectiveness of various wall coatings, especially fluorinated materials, in enhancing spin coherence in mercury magnetometers.

Findings

Fluorinated coatings lead to longer spin relaxation times.

Fluorinated paraffin coating yields the longest coherence time.

Coating choice significantly impacts magnetometer performance.

Abstract

We report on a comparison of spin relaxation rates in a $^{199}$Hg magnetometer using different wall coatings. A compact mercury magnetometer was built for this purpose. Glass cells coated with fluorinated materials show longer spin coherence times than if coated with their hydrogenated homologues. The longest spin relaxation time of the mercury vapor was measured with a fluorinated paraffin wall coating.