Compact atomic gravimeter based on a pulsed and accelerated optical lattice

TL;DR

This paper introduces a compact atomic gravimeter utilizing a pulsed optical lattice and Bloch oscillations to measure gravity with high sensitivity, enabling measurements at different positions and potential improvements in gravitational constant determination.

Contribution

A novel compact atomic gravimeter scheme using atom interferometry with coherent accelerations and an atomic elevator for versatile gravity measurements.

Findings

Sensitivity of 4.8×10^{-8} achieved in 4 minutes

Ability to measure gravity at different chamber positions

Potential to improve Newtonian constant G measurements

Abstract

We present a new scheme of compact atomic gravimeter based on atom interferometry. Atoms are maintained against gravity using a sequence of coherent accelerations performed by the Bloch oscillations technique. We demonstrate a sensitivity of 4.8$\times 10^{-8}$ with an integration time of 4 min. Combining this method with an atomic elevator allows to measure the local gravity at different positions in the vacuum chamber. This method can be of relevance to improve the measurement of the Newtonian gravitational constant $G$.