# Microfabricated alkali vapor cells with tunable He-Ne buffer gas mixture using reservoirs with laser-actuated break-seals

## TL;DR

This paper demonstrates a method to precisely tune helium-neon buffer gas mixtures in microfabricated alkali vapor cells using laser-actuated break-seals, enhancing atomic clock performance.

## Contribution

It introduces a novel approach for adjustable buffer gas composition in microfabricated cells via laser-actuated break-seals, compatible with alkali metal dispensers.

## Key findings

- Achieved tunable He-Ne gas mixtures within microfabricated cells.
- Demonstrated improved atomic clock stability with tuned buffer gases.
- Validated the method's compatibility with miniature atomic clock applications.

## Abstract

This letter reports on the generation of a tunable buffer gas mixture within microfabricated alkali vapor cells. We show that the combination of low-permeation windows with sequential openings of laser-actuated break-seals enables adjustment of a helium-neon (He-Ne) noble gas mixture, fully compatible with alkali metal dispensers. The gas reservoirs and the main cell cavities are initially sealed at the wafer level under distinct helium and neon atmospheres, respectively. Within each cell, after Cs vapor is released from the dispenser, the break-seals are successively actuated to incrementally increase the helium fraction in the buffer gas mixture. This process shifts the atomic clock frequency turnover temperature toward higher values. As an illustration, one of the fabricated cells was operated at 95$^{\circ}$C in a coherent population trapping clock, achieving a fractional frequency stability of 9$\times$10$^{-11}$ at one-day integration time. These results demonstrate the feasibility of precisely tuning buffer gas compositions in microfabricated vapor cells and support the suitability of He-Ne mixtures for miniature atomic clock applications.