[time-nuts] Thinking outside the box a super reference

[Poul-Henning Kamp]

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In message <0e976194-3cc1-2bc7-1289-0d9433132d31 at rubidium.dyndns.org>, Magnus D
anielson writes:

>> They won't be coherent photons, like in a Hydrogen maser, but we
>> don't need them to be, in fact that just causes the same exact
>> problems as the tuned cavity anyway, as long as we can measure
>> the frequency well enough.
>
>Active maser like the hydrogen would be possible naturally, but would 
>require the resonator.

I don't think they are.

With hydrogen, hitting the excited electron with the right frequency
increases the probability of coherent emission of the photon enough
that you get to the "SE" we know from LASER and MASER.

As I understand it not all excited modes of all atoms and molecules
have the not-quite-pinned-down quantum-thaumagic property to do that.

And I remember reading somewhere that the alkali atoms have been
poked and prodded to no end about this, in the hope of creating
active Cs, Rb or Sr frequency standards, but the very reluctant
(and expensive) conclusion was that hydrogen is the only one in the
family which knows the trick.

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