STREAMLINE

Quantum Technologies are set to transform the technology landscape and change the way we fundamentally navigate, compute, communicate and secure vast quantities of data that is the backbone of modern society. However, the technologies at the heart of this potential revolution are currently, largely shackled to sophisticated laboratories.

The Streamline project will build on highly-successful work from this consortium and will develop a reliable commercial solution for the cooling of strontium ions by addressing the challenges associated with the handling and packaging of novel GaN semiconductor materials. This demonstration represents a key step in meeting the demands of important systems covering the whole GaN-enabled spectrum (365-550nm).

Testing the final solution on its capability of cooling strontium ions will now be performed outside the timescales of this project, in a follow-up project by the National Physical Laboratory; "Measurement for Quantum". Despite this, all the parameters outlined at the start of the project can still be measured in house by FCAP with an increase in staff time, due to the more thorough than planned testing required by locking to rubidium features to investigate offset-locking and/or frequency-shifting techniques and using power spectral density linewidth analysis techniques on top of the originally planned beat-note measurements. Rubidium is made up of numerous atomic hyperfine transitions and by exploiting the 5 S 1/2 to 6 P 3/2 transition (~420nm) we are close enough to allow offset-locking to be achieved with standard modulators. This approach allows us to use easily sourceable rubidium gas vapour cells rather than using subcontract work to have access to Strontium and still allows the partners to deliver a fully characterised device by the end of the project duration.