Improvement of short-term stability of pulsed optically pumped rubidium atomic clock

We present a ⁸⁷Rb vapor-cell atomic clock using pulsed optical pumping with an optical detection technique. The pulsed optical pumping technique can eliminate the light shifts and increase the stability of vapor-cell atomic clock. For simplicity, direct laser absorption signal is used for the detection of a clock transition. A frequency stability of about 2×10^-11 at 1s has been measured and short term stability is improved by reducing the pulse sequence time with a real time control system.